EBay Inc on Monday rejected activist investor Carl Icahn’s two nominees to its board, saying both were unqualified, and urged shareholders to vote against them at its next annual meeting.<\/p>\n
Icahn, who owns just over 2 percent of the e-commerce company, has been pressuring eBay for weeks to spin off its PayPal payments business. He has also repeatedly accused eBay of poor corporate governance.<\/p>\n
The billionaire nominated Icahn Enterprises LP employees Daniel Ninivaggi and Jonathan Christodoro, both of whom Icahn regularly nominates to boards.<\/p>\n
The chairman of eBay’s corporate governance and nominating committee, Richard Schlosberg III, said the board considered both but rejected them because “neither nominee has relevant experience or expertise.”<\/p>\n
EBay said since each Icahn nominee currently sits on four public company boards, they are not in compliance with eBay’s guidelines on “overboarding.”<\/p>\n
EBay founder and Chairman Pierre Omidyar in a statement urged shareholders to support the company’s slate, which includes Chief Executive John Donahoe.<\/p>\n
The company also said Donahoe’s 2013 compensation fell by more than half to $13.8 million. That largely reflects the board’s decision in 2012 to give him a one-time award of $14.8 million in performance share units, although eBay’s weaker-than-expected financial performance also hurt his pay.<\/p>\n
The company did not in its preliminary proxy statement set the date for its next annual shareholders meeting, which is expected to take place in the spring.<\/p>\n
Icahn has sparred with eBay management via open letters and press releases since January, when the pugnacious billionaire made an unsolicited proposal for eBay to hive off PayPal.<\/p>\n
The company has repeatedly said PayPal and eBay are better off as part of the same company.<\/p>\n
In a fresh missive on Monday, Icahn accused Donahoe of “inexcusable incompetence” and said the fast-growing PayPal could “wither” if it remains part of eBay.<\/p>\n
“PayPal may well go the way of other former technology greats such as Blackberry, Dell, Eastman Kodak, Polaroid, Nintendo, Xerox, Sony, Palm, and AOL,” Icahn said.<\/p>\n
EBay called Icahn’s comments “false and misleading.”<\/p>\n
“In pursuit of his own profit motives, Carl Icahn has made another unsubstantiated attack on John,” eBay said.<\/p>\n
EBay shares fell 1.4 percent to $58.22 on the Nasdaq.<\/p>\n
Icahn digs into eBay over Skype sale<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n EBay founder rejects Icahn\u2019s PayPal plans<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n