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UPDATE: VW’s Top Shareholders Back Management as Angry Investors Vent
There was plenty of sound and fury from irate investors during Wednesday’s marathon Volkswagen Group shareholder meeting—the first since the company’s diesel emission cheating scandal emerged more than nine months ago, according to media reports.
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There was plenty of sound and fury from irate investors during Wednesday’s marathon Volkswagen Group shareholder meeting—the first since the company’s diesel emission cheating scandal emerged more than nine months ago, according to media reports.
But at the end of the day, the handful of shareholders that controls nearly 90% of the company’s voting stock backed VW’s management team and most of its proposals. The group consists of the Piech and Porsche families, which collectively control 52% of votes, the state of Lower Saxony (20%) and Qatar (17%).
The notable exception was Lower Saxony, which broke ranks by abstaining from a vote to endorse last year’s actions by former CEO Martin Winterkorn and VW brand chief Herbert Diess. Lower Saxony says it declined because both men are under investigation by German prosecutors about whether they could have alerted investors to the diesel scandal sooner.
Small investors vented during the 12-hour meeting with shouting and arguments. They complained about the insular nature of VW’s management and supervisory boards and bemoaned their handling the company’s diesel emission cheating scandal. Many strongly opposed recommendations by both boards that their members be exonerated of any wrongdoing, pointing to continuing legal investigations.
Most of the disgruntled shareholders aimed their ire at Chairman Hans Dieter Poetsch, who was chief financial officer when the diesel cheating began. Shareholders twice tried to have him removed as the meeting’s chairman.
Other shareholders questioned whether they would ever learn exactly how the scandal came about. Some groups expressed skepticism about CEO Matthias Mueller’s plan to transform VW into a global leader in electric and self-driving vehicles.
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