Representatives from five law and audit firms representing major uninsured depositors have met with Central Bank Governor Panicos Demetriades to discuss their client’s say and share on the new Bank of Cyprus board that will come out of the shareholders’ AGM on or about September 12.
The law firms of Christodoulos Vasiliades, Andreas Neocleous, Skordis & Papapetrou and Nicos Anastasiades, as well as the audit firm Costas Tsielepis, representing shareholders with more than 1.5%, say their clients, who held large deposits in the resolved Laiki Popular Bank, want to be represented on the new Bank of Cyprus board.
Laiki ‘legacy’ holders, representing an 18% stake in the recapitalised Bank of Cyprus, argue that Central Bank-appointed administrator Andri Antoniadou cannot vote or take decisions on behalf of the while block.
Central Bank technocrats were quoted by the state-owned Cyprus News Agency as saying the 18% shareholding issue is a legal ‘headache’ that the supervision authority had ‘inherited’.
A written statement said: “The Resolution Authority, in full agreement with the board of director of CBC, will carry out coordinated meetings with all interested parties in a bid to reach sound decisions as regards the administration of the shares package held by Laiki Bank in Bank of Cyprus.”
Meanwhile, former BOCY board member and chairman of the Cyprus Institute of Directors (IoD) Evdokimos Xenofontos wrote to the Central Bank Governor suggesting that proxies should be given to the uninsured depositors and other ‘bad’ Laiki creditors to enable them to vote for the new directors.
“The proxy-holders should be entitled to nominate some other person to present himself at the General Meeting and vote on their behalf,” Xenophontos said, adding that the 18% shareholding should not be exercised as a “block” vote, because that would mean that this stake could control the Bank of Cyprus at any general meeting.
Former Attorney General Alecos Markides, representing the remaining Laiki Legacy holders, SYKALA, said that it was possible to have a common body to act on behalf of all former Laiki depositors, while SYKALA president Adonis Papaconstantinou said the aim was to have a say in future decisions and hopes to have a new meeting with Governor Demetriades on August 20.
