Aviva chair apologises to shareholders for preference share debacle
Aviva's chair Sir Adrian Montague apologised to shareholders for the cancellation of preference shares at the companys annual general meeting today.
Shareholders voted to back Avivas board, despite anger over the cancellation of the shares.
Aviva was forced into a U-turn in March after it announced the cancellation of £450m of high-interest shares.
Read more: Implications for Aviva as it pays out £14m in compensation
Following criticism from investors it rowed back on the plans and has since agreed to pay compensation to those affected which could hit £14m.
Montague also faced questions from shareholders about the decision to allow chief executive Mark Wilson to take a position on the board of the worlds largest asset manager BlackRock.
Read more: Implications for Aviva as it pays out £14m in compensation
Montague said that Wilsons directorship of BlackRock was arranged “very carefully” to avoid conflicts of interest.
Wilson, who received 96.3 per cent support for his re-appointment, said Aviva had £500m available to spend on acquisitions.
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