The New Zealand Exchange board will this week take another look at chief executive Mark Weldon's bonus scheme after an outcry from shareholders.
NZX board members have been trying to placate several large shareholders who are concerned the performance targets in the bonus scheme are too low and
that Weldon could end up with too much control of the company.
"We are taking on feedback and we've got a scheduled board meeting later on this week and we'll consider those views then," NZX deputy chairman Nigel Williams told the Business Herald.
He said he could not comment on whether the board would reconsider the scheme as that was for the board as a whole to decide.
Under the scheme, Weldon could increase his 5.3 per cent stake in the company to 9.9 per cent, worth more than $20 million at the current market capitalisation. Williams said the scheme was necessary to ensure that the NZX's strong growth - a 50 per cent annual total shareholder return over the past three years - would continue.
"Mark has been a very successful CEO," said Williams, who is also a member of the NZX board remuneration committee. "This is a company that was going to be sold to the ASX for $11 million and today has a market capitalisation of about $220 million.
"Mark has led the company and delivered very good growth. We want to consider all the views but we also want to ensure that NZX investors enjoy that growth in the future."
Williams also said: "I think as a board we should have communicated some of the facts of the scheme in a better way."
Warren Couillault, chief investment officer of Fisher Funds, which with 9.7 per cent is the largest shareholder, said he met NZX chairman Simon Allen yesterday.
"The chairman has undertaken to discuss it among other members of the board and report to us by the end of the week," he said.
Couillault said he was still concerned about "the structure of the scheme, the quantum and the hurdle rate".
Tony Gibbs, director of 2.3 per cent shareholder GPG, said he had discussed the scheme with Allen and found him "conciliatory".
"He said [the board] is definitely going to think about it more and they're soliciting views," said Gibbs.
It is understood that several institutional shareholders have asked the board not to present the proposed option package to shareholders for approval at next week's annual meeting.
Instead, they want the board to formulate a new option package and present it to shareholders at a later date.
Weldon would have to pay for the shares, at their average price in the days leading up to June 4 this year, when the scheme started.
