My LetterThis was the letter that I sent to CWB Investor Relations, yesterday.
When I called today, I was just trying to ascertain if the letter had been forwarded to Mr. Pollock. The IR guy thought that I was upset that the preference shares had gone to eastern Canadian institutions, and I responded I was upset that shareholders whether they are in eastern Canada or western Canada or Mars for that matter, weren't given an opportunity via a rights issue to participate.
My wife and I are shareholders of CWB. We are also customers of Canadian Direct Insurance, for the simple reason that we try to support the companies in which we own shares .
I would appreciate if you would forward my email to Mr. Larry Pollock, since I think he is in the best position to address my concerns. Even if he chooses to ignore my email, I would still prefer that he have an opportunity to be apprised that shareholders aren’t necessarily as thrilled as he is, in the manner that this issue was undertaken.
I am left mystified by the news release of the issuance of $200 million in preferred share units. I am trying to reconcile Mr. Pollock’s comments in the news release "We are very pleased to announce this agreement, as execution will significantly augment the bank's already strong balance sheet and provides considerable flexibility to pursue accretive growth opportunities," said Larry Pollock, CWB's president and chief executive officer. "We would also like to recognize the premier institutions that participated in the private placement of this deal. We are extremely pleased they have joined our strong base of institutional investors and would like to extend our gratitude for their recognition of CWB's growth potential. At the same time, when I as a shareholder open the Annual Report and read the comment … “we made a promise to western Canadians: we will invest our allegiance, and our resources and our future in Western Canada…. We will work diligently to win the trust and loyalty of our employees, customers and shareholders; we will create ongoing opportunities for all stakeholders.”
I am extremely disappointed that this issue wasn’t done so as to give existing shareholders the opportunity to participate in the issue. This would have aligned your words with action. My wife and I would both have participated if you had proposed a rights issue for preference shares. Mr. Prem Watsa or other institutional investors, would undoubtedly have backstopped the issue.
I thank you for your consideration of my comments.