IOOF members vote to go public
IOOFmembers have voted overwhelmingly to end the friendly status of the organisation and become a listed company.
The vote, which was held on Friday afternoon, resulted in 95.8 per cent of members voting in favour for the move, with 4.2 per cent voting against. About 500 members attended the meeting, which was a quiet affair.
However, this did not stop members expressing their concerns about the change of status and potential takeovers in the future.
IOOF has copiedColonialin putting a 10 per cent cap on share ownership for the first five years. This can only be overturned with a vote from the shareholders. In Colonial’s case, the shareholders received a very attractive offer from theCommonwealth Bankand quickly overturned the cap within the five years.
At the IOOF meeting most members were concerned about how the change will affect their policies. Chairman Lindsay Bytheway spent a lot of time explaining there would be no change. But that didn’t stop similar questions in the two-hour meeting.
The members were also concerned about IOOF not listing. They will receive favourable tax treatment on gaining the shares in the company so long as it lists within two years. It is expected that IOOF will list in the first year of its demutualised state, although the board is remaining tight-lipped on an actual date.
The members will receive their share allocation, based on invested sums and the length of time they have been members of the friendly, in the new financial year.
Surprisingly, there was only one question about long-term members not being rewarded enough for all their many years of membership. Also surprisingly, there were no questions about future director and management share option schemes which have been proposed in the demutualisation document.
The current board has received a small share allocation along the same rules that applied to the members.
The demutualisation is now subject to a Supreme Court hearing to approve the vote, and after that, IOOF will become a public company, ending its 156-year old status as a friendly society.
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