Capital Markets Authority (CMA) has given Co-operative Bank of Kenya a green slight to pay its shareholders Sh5.9 billion in dividends and hold virtual Annual General Meetings.
The CMA on Thursday set guidelines of holding AGM amid the Covid-19 pandemic after a court ruling that permitted firms to conduct virtual AGM for its shareholders.
The bank says it will pay Sh1 per share dividend.
In the new CMA guidelines, the regulator advised firms to hold virtual meetings, in effect freezing deals that required shareholder approval in companies whose articles of association do not provide for online AGMs.
“Most of the listed companies were restricted by their Articles of Association to hold virtual general meetings, for example, Scangroup and Kenya Airways, who notified CMA of the restriction and their intention to seek court orders to allow them to hold virtual AGMs,” said CMA in a statement on April 30.
“The court’s decision will benefit all listed companies that could not hold virtual general meetings due to the Articles of Association restrictions. Listed companies will apply to the Capital Markets Authority for a ‘no objection’, to proceed as directed by the court.”
In the West, online voting at AGMs has taken root since the Coronavirus outbreak as investors shun large gatherings because of travel restrictions or fear of infection, Swiss tech firm Sherpany said.
