RESTRUCTURING
Hedge fund urges BHP to drop British arm
Activist hedge fund urges BHP to scrap its dual-corporate system, split off its US oil arm and revise its capital return policy
Sydney — BHP Billiton came under fresh pressure to restructure on Monday as activist hedge fund Elliott Advisors urged the miner to scrap its dual-corporate system, split off its US oil arm and revise its capital return policy. Elliott outlined the proposal in a letter to directors at BHP, adding the miner to a string of firms it has sought to shake up, including Samsung Electronics, Dutch paints and chemicals group Akzo Nobel and brewer SABMiller Holdings. The letter comes at a time when miners are enjoying an unexpected rise in prices for many commodities. But in late February, after unveiling an almost eight-fold rise in half-year profit, BHP CEO Andrew Mackenzie said price corrections loomed, notably for coal and iron ore. Unlocking value The goal of the letter "is to provide details of the BHP shareholder value unlock plan to all of BHP’s shareholders so that BHP can engage openly with all parties", Elliott said in a statement, disclosing an economic interest of about 4.1% of L...
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