Kwek Leng Beng (L), executive chairman of City Developments Limited, and Sherman Kwek, group CEO of the company. Photo courtesy of Reuters, City Developments Limited
Singaporean billionaire Kwek Leng Beng, executive chairman of City Developments Limited, has dropped a lawsuit against his son, the company’s CEO, seeking to resolve the high-profile boardroom tussle at one of Singapore’s largest property developers.
The 4th richest billionaire of Singapore said last month he had taken legal action to remove his son, Sherman Kwek, from the helm of the company, accusing him and other directors of breaching corporate governance standards in efforts to consolidate control of the company’s board.
Both father and son will remain in their roles and all current directors will retain their positions on the board, the company said in a statement issued late on Wednesday.
“All the board members have agreed to put aside their differences for the greater good of CDL and its stakeholders,” Leng Beng said in the statement.
Shares in the firm gained 3.4% in early Thursday trade, set for their strongest session since August 22, 2024. They are roughly flat compared to Feb. 25, the day before the lawsuit became public.
Some analysts cautioned that key issues were unresolved.
“The gesture offers a small respite but does not fully address the various corporate governance issues and board differences that were raised during the dispute,” RHB analysts said in a note to clients.
Leng Beng had alleged that his son bypassed the firm’s nomination committee on a couple of occasions to change the board composition and made significant changes to committees and governance.
