Qualcomm today said it won’t entertain the idea of replacing its board of directors with substitutes nominated by Broadcom.
Earlier this month, Broadcom nominated 11 people to Qualcomm’s board of directors. It appealed directly to Qualcomm shareholders to change the company’s leadership at its annual meeting, scheduled for March 2018.
Broadcom’s goal is to stack the board with people who would favor Broadcom’s attempt to acquire Qualcomm. Qualcomm isn’t having it.
“After a thorough review of the Broadcom-Silver Lake nominees, the Governance Committee concluded that these nominees are inherently conflicted and would not bring incremental skills or expertise to the Qualcomm Board,” said Qualcomm.
Qualcomm went on to say its existing board is educated enough to understand the markets, opportunities, and threats that face Qualcomm in the coming years. Qualcomm also believes Broadcom’s offer dramatically undervalues Qualcomm. Plus, Broadcom has not proposed how to navigate regulatory hurdles that would face such a deal, nor has it shown in detail how it would finance the acquisition.