Shopify Inc. shareholders voted to solidify founder and CEO Tobi Lütke’s voting power for as long as he is at the company and ensure he, his family and affiliates will hold 40 percent of the company’s voting power.
The approval received at Shopify’s annual general meeting approved a new corporate governance structure that would grant Lütke non-transferable founder shares.
The proposal was opposed by at least one advisory firm, Glass, Lewis & Co, which says the move limits shareholder rights and inadequately protects minority shareholder interests.
Shareholders also approved a 10-for-one split of the company’s class A and class B shares, which Shopify has positioned as a way to make voting shares more affordable to a boarder segment of the population and diversify its ownership base.
Shopify did not immediately say what margin of approval it received for the two measures.
The votes come after Shopify shares plunged in value in recent months and a month after company executives, including Lütke, tweeted that they were purchasing shares as a sign of their confidence in the business.
