Mood souring on dual-class shares as SGX gives green light

SINGAPORE (July 2): At Facebook’s AGM on May 31, its CEO Mark Zuckerberg was called upon to defend the company’s dual-class share structure. Zuckerberg is among several Facebook insiders who hold Class B shares, which give the holders 10 votes per share.

Thanks to these powerful Class B shares, Zuckerberg effectively controls nearly 60% of the voting power at Facebook. Unsurprisingly, shareholder proposals at the meeting for a fairer voting structure, greater transparency on gender bias in remuneration and a board committee to assess and monitor risks were all voted down.

But Zuckerberg probably has not heard the last of shareholders’ concerns on its business model, privacy safeguards and corporate governance. Facebook is facing increasing scrutiny following the revelation that Cambridge Analytica, a recently defunct political consultancy, was able to extract data on Facebook users without their explicit permissions. A group of shareholders reportedly wants Zuckerberg to step down from his position as the company’s chairman.

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