Comment on Raspberry Pi is planning a London IPO, but its CEO expects “no change” in focus
iknowitwheniseeit@lemmynsfw.com 4 months agoI believe that being publicly traded means that you are obligated to maximize shareholder returns, whereas a privately-held company can have literally any goals, as long as it pays taxes and follows the law.
someguy3@lemmy.ca 4 months ago
Yes but that part is not exactly as strong as you portray. The BOD has the power to decide what to do and how to do it, so they can decide on pretty much anything and say it’s for long term return. They can decide on doing more environmentally, DEI, ECG, the rarely seen good wages, keep manufacturing in the west, donations, whatever. They have pretty much complete leeway and can always say it’s for long term return. Also the main (only?) way for the shareholder return obligation to play out is a class action lawsuit by the shareholders, who they are the majority of. (You may hear about it a lot because the far right is trying to rely on this idea to prevent companies from doing anything they don’t like.)