Shareholders of South Australian developer-publisher Mighty Kingdom have rejected an attempt by Shane Yeend, the developer’s major shareholder and former CEO, to roll the company’s board.
As reported by Kotaku Australia earlier this week, Mighty Kingdom leadership held an extraordinary general meeting this afternoon at which shareholders were asked to vote on the matter. According to reporting from The Australian this evening, it appears that shareholders have voted against Mr. Yeend’s proposal, which would have seen him install himself and a hand-picked board of his own directors to oversee the company.
Seven resolutions were tabled in an effort to replace Mighty Kingdom’s existing board of directors. Not a single one got up.
It was, however, seemingly a close call. According to reporting from the ABC’s Jackson Ryan, 53.5% of shareholders voted in favour of keeping the current board, and 46.5% voted to remove them. Ryan’s conclusion is ominous — “A close finish and a signal this is probably not over.”
Nevertheless, staff at Mighty Kingdom will be breathing a sigh of relief, for now. As we reported earlier this week, an anonymous open letter from Mighty Kingdom staff was sent to shareholders imploring them to vote against Mr. Yeend’s proposals. The letter asserted that a significant number of current staff were prepared to quit on the spot if Mr. Yeend was returned to the position of CEO.
Mr. Yeend has been vocal about his desire for change at Mighty Kingdom in recent months, penning the original and explosive open letter to shareholders that set today’s EGM in motion.
“If we don’t get the outcome we want for all shareholders we will fight until Mighty Kingdom is in liquidation, and nobody wins then except me,” Mr. Yeend wrote at the time. “But I want us all to win.” Mr. Yeend’s letter characterised Mighty Kingdom leadership as “snake oil salesmen, liars and cheats,” and suggested that “MKL makes bad games that don’t make money and the world has told us that.” The Mighty Kingdom board has strenuously rejected Mr. Yeend’s claims throughout this entire process.
For now, Mighty Kingdom chairman David Butorac says the company will move forward on a new strategy.
“I don’t consider this as a win – I see it as a strong vote of confidence in the business and its future direction,” Mr. Butorac told The Oz. “The investors that are coming onboard, both in the guise of the directors that will join the board but also the investors that they will bring to the table, are very games experienced, and it will provide the impetus that Mighty Kingdom needs to stay in the ground-breaking area of Australian games development.”
Image: Mighty Kingdom
Update 8:11 PM AEDT: Updated to include further reporting from the ABC’s Jackson Ryan.
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