In a reversal of an earlier shareholder decision, IDFC First Bank shareholders have now approved a proposal to grant board representation to Currant Sea Investments BV, an affiliate of private equity giant Warburg Pincus.
The decision was formalised at the bank’s 11th Annual General Meeting (AGM), held virtually on July 29, 2025. A special resolution enabling Currant Sea to nominate one non-executive director, who will be liable to retire by rotation, was passed with the necessary majority, said bank said in a regulatory filing.
While Currant Sea’s board nominee has not yet been disclosed, this marks a significant change in shareholder sentiment from May 2025, when a similar resolution was voted down.
As reported by Moneycontrol at the time, shareholders had rejected a proposal to amend the bank’s Articles of Association to formally grant Currant Sea a board seat, despite the investor’s significant capital commitment.
Currant Sea, along with ADIA had together committed Rs 7,500 crore through compulsorily convertible preference shares (CCPS), of which Rs 4,876 crore came from Currant Sea alone.
However, the May resolution had garnered only 64.10 percent support, falling short of the 75 percent threshold required for a special resolution under the Companies Act. The outcome was driven largely by institutional investors, who made up 76 percent of the voting base and where 51.3 percent voted against the proposal.
While retail shareholders backed the move with a commanding 98.67 percent support, their vote share was too small to sway the result.
The resolution had triggered a governance stand-off between the company and its institutional shareholders.
Leading proxy advisory firm Institutional Investor Advisory Services (IiAS) had recommended voting against the resolution. IiAS flagged that the proposal, if passed, would allow Currant Sea to secure a board seat without a minimum shareholding threshold such as 10 percent. It also opposed additional rights, like committee nominations, arguing those should remain at the board’s discretion.
The fresh approval in July however suggests that those concerns may have now been addressed.
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