Velodyne successfully resolved the conflict on the board of directors

Velodyne Lidar Inc. (VLDR) has announced a change in the composition of the Board of Directors. Probably, the problem that previously led to a strong drop in VLDR quotes has now. Against the background of this news, VLDR stock rose 6% to $2.12 at auction on March 11. On March 13, 2022, Eric Singer resigned from the board of directors, who in 2021 were by shareholder David Hall.

Recall that earlier in Velodyne there was a serious conflict between Hall and former CEO Anand Gopalan. The shareholder claimed the CEO was not fulfilling his duties and created a risk of leakage of valuable technologies through Indian development centers. Because of the conflict, Gopalan resigned from office at the end of last year. Now Singer, who has completed his task, is also leaving the board of directors. He said that now everything will be fine with the company, and the new CEO Ted Tewksbury can ensure the development of Velodyne.

Thus, the conflict between the major shareholder and the management is over. Eric Singer not only provided a compromise but also settled matters with the SEC. It should noted that in this conflict David Hall could not win. He and his wife sold a large block of shares in just seven days, which led to a strong drop in quotations. Now the influence of the Hall family on the company’s decision has significantly decreased, but the controversial figure of Anand Gopalan is no longer involved in the game, which was the primary requirement of David Hall.

This is a positive signal for investors. Velodyne can now focus on maintaining technological leadership in the development of miniature laser radars (lidars) and increasing shareholder capital. Velodyne is a pioneer in mass production of lidars, and they used its equipment in the most demanding applications, for example, in robot racing cars.