Hibiki Path Advisors Sent a Letter Titled “Request for Consideration of Privatization” to the Board of Directors of Japan Pure Chemical Co., Ltd. on September 9, 2024

TOKYO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Hibiki Path Advisors (hereinafter referred to as “Hibiki” or “we”) is an asset management company based in Singapore with long-term investing focus into Japanese public equities for domestic and global clients.

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On September 9th, 2024, Hibiki submitted a letter titled “Request for Consideration of Privatization” to the board of directors of Japan Pure Chemical Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “JPC”), one of our major investees. As of September 9th, 2024, we are a major shareholder of JPC with owning more than 13% of its outstanding shares.

As a major shareholder, we have been engaging with the management of JPC for a long period of time. Also, we submitted shareholder proposals at its 53rd Annual General Meeting of Shareholders this year. As referenced in the shareholder proposal explanation video below, JPC has accumulated an excessive amount of cash and investment securities on the balance sheet, resulting in low capital efficiency. Coupled with stagnant business performance, this has led to prolonged underperformance in the stock price over the long term.

This letter presents to the JPC’s board of directors our concerns regarding what we perceive as “THREE INSUFFICIENCIES”. To address these issues and to truly maximize corporate value, we have called on the board to earnestly conduct a thorough, zero-based evaluation of whether maintaining as a listed company indeed remains the best course of action.

Following the submission of the letter, we had the opportunity to directly present the letter’s contents to its independent directors, and we engaged with them in an open-minded discussion. We will continue to actively engage with JPC in our efforts to maximize JPC’s corporate value.

Please also refer to the link below for access to the full text of the letter.
“Request for Consideration Regarding the Privatization (Japanese Only)”

（For Reference）
20th February, 2023 Discussion Material
53rd Annual General Meeting of Shareholders: Hibiki Shareholder Proposal
53rd Annual General Meeting of Shareholders: Shareholder Proposal Explanation Video
53rd Annual General Meeting of Shareholders: AGM Result and Commentary

October 2^nd, 2024

※This press release and the attached letter do not constitute a solicitation for an offer to acquire or recommend the purchase or sale of specific securities, or advice on investment, legal, tax, accounting, or any other matters.