Yangzijijiang Financial Holding has bought back a substantial tranche of 12.6 million shares earlier today, following news last Friday that CEO Vincent Toe has resigned.
According to an SGX filing after the market closed, the company paid between 31.5 cents and 33.5 cents for the shares, bringing its cumulative total to 67.06 million shares. The most recent buyback, on Oct 20, was 2.4 million shares at 33.5 cents each.
Besides a wider market selldown, investors were presumably spooked by news of Toe's notice to leave the company by next April, leaving executive chairman Ren Yuanlin to assume more control at the head of a management team that is more streamlined.
YFH is an investment firm spun off for its own listing from Yangzijiang Shipbuilding Holdings l SO7 ast April.
Toe and Ren went back nearly two decades, when Toe helped bring YSH to IPO here in Singapore and served as one of its independent directors.
Despite the buybacks by YFH earlier today, its shares ended the day at 32 cents, down 7.35%.