FCMB Group Plc said it will go ahead with its already scheduled Annual General Meeting (AGM), albeit by proxy. This is the second company to follow this route after Guaranty Trust Bank Plc resorted to a proxy AGM in late March.
In a public disclosure that was sent to the Nigerian Stock Exchange, yesterday, FCMB Group explained its decision. According to the company, a proxy AGM became necessary due to the Coronavirus pandemic, and the ongoing efforts to contain its spread through social distancing and lockdowns.
The statement further noted that the company’s decision was informed by the important corporate actions that are “predicated on the AGM”.
In other words, FCMB Group has some important and urgent resolutions that must be made by shareholders during the AGM, including the approval of the company’s audited financial statement and the resolution to pay dividends to shareholders.
[READ FURTHER: FCMB appoints Deloitte as new auditors following expiration of KPMG’s tenure)
The AGM will hold on the 28th of April, 2020, as previously scheduled, following approval by the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC). Part of the statement by the company said:
“We are also mindful of the legal framework and corporate actions predicated on the AGM, such as payment of dividend to shareholders, approval of audited accounts and filing of the Company’s annual returns, ratification of the retirement of and appointment of Directors as well as the appointment of new Auditors in line with the Central Bank of Nigeria requirements.
“Therefore, towards ensuring that these actions do not remain stalled as would be the case if the AGM is postponed or cancelled, we engaged the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) and have obtained their approval to hold the AGM WITH ATTENDANCE BY PROXIES.”
Recall that GTBank had gone ahead with a proxy AGM due to the similar reasons that FCMB Group Plc highlighted above.
FCMB Group Plc’s stock started today’s trading on the Nigerian Stock Exchange with a share price of N1.45.
