Good morning, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to the IPH Limited Annual General Meeting for 2023. I'm Peter Warne, the chairman of the company, and I'll be chairing the meeting today. I would like to welcome those shareholders that are here in the room today, and I'd also like to welcome those of you who are watching us online. As is required by the Corporations Act, I will be calling a poll for each of the resolutions that we're voting on today. It is now past 10:30 A.M., and as there is a quorum present, I declare the meeting open. I also declare the polls open. I acknowledge the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation on the lands where we are meeting today.
I pay my respects to elders past, present, and emerging, and celebrate the diversity of the Aboriginal peoples and their ongoing culture and connections to the lands and waters of New South Wales. We also acknowledge the traditional custodians of the various lands on which our online participants are working from today, and the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people participating in this meeting. I'd like to take this opportunity to introduce you to the members of your board, senior executives, and our auditors. Starting from the middle of our table here, we have John Aitken, Robyn Lowe, Jingmin Qian, Vicki Carter, and up for election today, David Wiadrowski. Our CEO, Dr. Andrew Blattman, our Chief Financial Officer, John Wadley. And we have with us today our auditor from Deloitte, Hina DeLaney. Thank you, Zinnia.
I'd also like to take this opportunity to thank EY once again for hosting our AGM. I table a notice of meeting dated the twelfth of October, 2023. Copies of the notice of meeting and annual report have been made available on the IPH website. I will take the notice of meeting as read. I will be keeping to the order set out in the notice of meeting, and shareholders are requested to please keep their questions until, till the particular resolution is dealt with by the meeting. Please note, there will be a discussion period at the end of the meeting. Before moving to the formal business of today's meeting, the Managing Director and I will first provide you with an update of the group's highlights for the year. These addresses were lodged with the ASX prior to the commencement of the meeting today.
For my address today, I will provide a brief overview of our financial results for the 2023 financial year, together with some commentary on our strategic progress during the year, as we continue to work towards our vision to be the leading IP services group in secondary IP markets. I'll also make some comments in reference to the remuneration framework and the cybersecurity incident we experienced during the year. I will conclude with some further details about board renewal. IPH reported a statutory net profit after tax of AUD 64.5 million for the 2023 financial year, compared to AUD 52.6 million for the prior year. Diluted earnings per share increased 19% to AUD 0.284 per share.
On an underlying basis, we reported a significant increase in earnings, with underlying net profit after tax increasing by 20% to AUD 99 million and underlying EBITDA increasing 28% to AUD 170 million. Group underlying results in the 2023 financial year were assisted by the inclusion of earnings from Smart & Biggar in Canada, which we acquired with effect from 6 October 2022, and from a foreign exchange currency benefit. The metric we'd like to focus on is underlying diluted earnings per share, which increased 16% from AUD 0.377 to AUD 0.436 per share. Andrew will provide further context on our financial results in his address. Progress on our growth strategy.
The IPH strategy has been consistent since our listing in 2014, which supports our vision to be the leading IP services group in secondary IP markets and adjacent areas of IP. We successfully acquired two Canadian IP firms over the past 12 months, which is consistent with this strategy. The acquisitions of Smart & Biggar in October 2022 and Ridout & Maybee in September 2023 have enabled IPH to broaden our reach beyond Asia Pacific into another significant secondary IP market. The Smart & Biggar business has continued to perform well in its first year as a member of the IPH group. We continue to assess other attractive acquisition opportunities, both in Canada and elsewhere. Dividends and capital management. IPH remains in a strong financial position.
For FY 2023, your board declared a final dividend of AUD 0.175 per share, 35% franked, bringing the full-year dividend to AUD 0.33 per share, compared to AUD 0.305 per share in the prior year. The FY 2023 full-year dividend is in line with the board's dividend policy to pay 80%-90% of cash net profit after tax as dividends. IPH maintains a target leverage ratio that is net debt to underlying EBITDA of 1.5-2 times, which we believe is appropriate for a company of our size and business profile. The board is comfortable to the company to temporarily exceed this target range in an acquisition scenario, given the earnings accretive nature of these acquisitions, together with the fact that our business is highly cash generative with minimal capital expenditure requirements.
This enables the company to return to the target range within a relatively short period. Remuneration. Our remuneration framework continues to align with shareholder value creation. Remuneration outcomes for FY 2023 reflected the company's financial performance and also the impact of the cybersecurity incident we experienced during the year. The 2023 financial result, while satisfactory, did not reach the level at which the financial component of the short-term incentive payment was achieved. The CEO and CFO achieved a portion of their potential short-term bonus related to the achievement of their strategic KPIs. For the FY 2023 long-term incentive, the three-year EPS compound annual growth rate for the financial years 2021 to 2023 was 6.8%, which resulted in a partial payout of 42.4% of the target amount.
We continue to review our remuneration framework to ensure our ongoing ability to attract, motivate, and retain the talent necessary to run a business and drive behavior that aligns with the creation of sustainable shareholder value. With this in mind, we intend to carry out a thorough review of our executive remuneration framework during financial year 2024. The cybersecurity incident. As shareholders will be aware, we experienced a cybersecurity incident during the year. On the thirteenth of March, 2023, we detected that a portion of our IT environment had been subject to unauthorized access. We immediately enacted our cyber response plan and implemented our business continuity plan to resolve the cyber incident. A forensic investigation identified that a limited set of data was downloaded by an unauthorized third party during the incident.
The downloaded dataset originated from the Spruson & Ferguson Australian business, and primarily contained data relating to a small number of clients of Spruson & Ferguson lawyers, and certain historical, financial, and corporate information. We have completed a forensic investigation and review of the regulatory requirements associated with the issue. We have not experienced any known loss of a client relationship as a result of this incident. We have since conducted a comprehensive post-incident review into the incident, and further learnings and opportunities are being incorporated into strengthening our cybersecurity measures and controls. Board renewal. We continued our board renewal process during the year, and shareholders will recall that Vicki Carter was appointed as a non-executive director to the board in October 2022, and was subsequently elected by the shareholders to the board at this meeting last year.
Today, subject to the shareholder support, we are pleased to welcome David Wiadrowski to the board. David has over 25 years' experience as a partner of PwC, including five years as Chief Operating Officer of PwC Assurance, where he was responsible for managing the firm's largest business unit, and five years practicing in the firm's Indonesian office, where in addition to his responsibility as an audit partner, he was responsible for the firm's IT platform. David has extensive experience working with companies in the technology, infocomms, and entertainment, and media industries. David is also an experienced ASX-listed non-executive director across international M&A work, strategy development, and transformation.
David is standing for election at to the board at today's meeting, and and subject to shareholder support of his nomination, the board looks forward to his contribution to the continued growth and success of IPH. It is anticipated that David will become the chair of the board audit committee, following Robyn's... Robyn Lowe's retirement from the board next year. You will hear from David directly later in the meeting. Our board renewal process will continue throughout this year, and the company will update shareholders as appropriate. In conclusion, I'd like to acknowledge Andrew and his leadership team, and all our people across the IPH group, for their hard work over the past year.
In particular, I want to extend a warm welcome to our Canadian-based staff who have joined the IPH group over the last year. We are fortunate to have such a highly talented group of people who consistently deliver results for our clients, which in turn provides increased returns to our shareholders. Let me conclude by thanking you, our shareholders, for your continued support. Now I'll ask Andrew to present the Managing Director's address. Thanks, Andrew.
Thank you, Peter, and good morning, ladies and gentlemen. I'm pleased to present my Managing Director address today. Let me say at the outset, IPH made considerable progress over the past year. Our financial results reflect resilience in our business, which comes from having exposure to an increasing number of IP jurisdictions. The ongoing consolidation of the Canadian IP market from the acquisitions of Smart and Biggar, and Ridout and Maybee, also highlights the increased scale and diversity of the IPH group. Our journey as a listed entity to support our strategy to be the world's leading IP group in secondary IP markets, commenced some nine years ago when we listed on the ASX with a market capitalization of approximately AUD 330 million.
Today, we have a market capitalization of approximately AUD 1.6 billion, with an international network of member firms working in 10 IP jurisdictions, servicing more than 25 countries. In that time, IPH has delivered total shareholder return, share price growth, and reinvestment of dividends of approximately 212%, compared to 87% for the S&P/ASX 200 accumulation index. It's with that backdrop, I'll today provide some further context to our FY 2023 results, give an update on our strategy, and an update on our current trading for FY 2024. FY 2023 results, let me start with a summary. On an underlying basis, IPH delivered a 20% increase in underlying NPAT to AUD 99 million, with an underlying EBITDA improving by 28% to AUD 170 million.
As Peter indicated, the underlying group result included a contribution from Smart and Biggar acquired during the year, and was also assisted by the lower average Australian US dollar exchange rate compared to the prior year. On a like-for-like basis, which removes the impact of acquisitions and the effect of foreign exchange movements, revenue was steady, with underlying EBITDA declining by 3% on the prior year. In Asia, a continuing solid performance in our Singapore hub was offset by a decline in our Hong Kong, China business. One of our larger clients exited China, which reflects a wider industry trend, where some corporates are diversifying their supply chain reliance on China, and doing so, seeking alternative manufacturing locations. Like-for-like revenue in our Australian and New Zealand IP businesses declined by 1%, with like-for-like EBITDA declining by 5%.
This represented an improvement from the first half, where revenue had declined 3% and EBITDA down 6%, notwithstanding some disruption from managing response to the cyber incident in March, April. Strategy update. A major focus during the year was continuing to successfully integrate Smart & Biggar into the IPH network. The acquisition of the patent market leader, Smart & Biggar, extended our reach beyond Asia Pacific, and it enabled an initial strong presence in Canada, which is a major secondary IP market. Smart & Biggar's financial performance for the year was marginally ahead of our expectations and recorded CAD 31.4 million in underlying EBITDA on a date of acquisition, 6 October last year. In September 2023, we consolidated our initial presence in Canada with the acquisition of IP services firm, Ridout & Maybee.
Ridout & Maybee is a well-known Canadian IP firm with more than 30 high-quality IP professional staff working from Toronto, Ottawa, and Burlington offices. Their clients include large multinational corporations, universities, government agencies, startups, all the way through to individual inventors. Ridout & Maybee will operate under the Smart & Biggar brand. The acquisitions of Smart & Biggar and Ridout & Maybee provide further diversity and resilience to our earnings base, while also enabling us to enhance our international service offering to our clients. As we outlined with our results in August, we are continuing to pursue other acquisition opportunities, and we remain involved in active discussions with one particular opportunity. We also continue to assess further opportunities in Canada and elsewhere. Given the increased size and scope of the IPH group, we're also enhancing our organizational structure.
This is designed to ensure we can fully manage and leverage network opportunities which come from an expanded IPH network to service our clients and enhance our capability to support our people across multiple time zones. In addition to acquisitions, another core aspect of our strategy is to drive organic growth across our business. In Asia, we've established a new team and office in Manila, which expands our presence to seven offices in that region. In Australia, we have commenced a number of specific business development initiatives to drive new revenue, including specific business development plans for practice groups and individual fee earners, a specific program with incentive plans to reward fee earner sales activity, and a new client relationship management system to enhance client interactions. We are seeing some encouraging early signs from these initiatives.
Over the past year, over 1,000 patent cases have been transferred to Spruson & Ferguson Australia and Griffith Hack from both Australian and overseas clients. While these cases aren't reflected in IPH filing numbers, as they've already been filed, they include a multitude of pending applications filed across multiple jurisdictions. And of course, new filings in our market, going forward, will be under the address for service of our firms within the group. Sustainability. IPH remains committed to sustainability, and we continue to work closely with our stakeholders as part of our commitment to drive positive change and sustainable outcomes. During the year, we refreshed our sustainability strategy, which has led to the identification of core strategic priorities, which remain the focus of our sustainability agenda.
We also enhanced our greenhouse gas reporting, which now comprises direct and indirect emission sources, scopes 1, 2, and 3, of our international operations, including our member firms.... Details of our progress are contained within our sustainability report in our 2023 annual report, available on our website, and no doubt available here. Just a brief commentary on artificial intelligence. AI is becoming a significant area of interest in the corporate environment. While businesses are currently adapting to the potential impacts of AI, whenever there is a change in technology, the one constant is the ongoing requirement for IP protection. Moreover, whilst questions of inventorship remain to be fully dealt with by the courts, we can expect some increased patent filing activity as a result of generative AI and its role in innovation. We can also expect AI will enhance and contribute to efficiencies in the administration of IP.
For example, we are assessing the impact of IP on the patent translation process. We do expect AI translations will improve. However, the technical nature of patent specifications will still require an expert review by a patentee, which is already the case. AI is obviously an area we continue to monitor carefully. Now for an update on trading. I'll provide an update on trading for the financial year to date. I'm pleased to report that IPH has made a solid start to the financial year. Underlying performance for the first four months of FY 2024, IPH's group underlying revenue and EBITDA were ahead of the prior corresponding period. This includes the benefit of the higher US dollar in this period compared to last year, and the inclusion of more than three months of Smart & Biggar.
The average AU-US exchange rate for the first four months of FY 2024 was 0.65, compared to 0.673 for the prior corresponding period. Based upon the prior year currency profile and the year-to-date average exchange rate, a one cent strength in the US dollar equates to an approximate increase of AUD two million in annual service charges, majority of which falls to the EBITDA line. Performance on a like-for-like basis excludes the impact of foreign exchange movements and acquisitions. The like-for-like comparison also excludes Canada, as the acquisition of Smart & Biggar was completed on the sixth October 2022, only three weeks' contribution during the comparative period. Of course, Ridout & Maybee was completed on 29th September 2023.
So for the first four months of FY 2024, group like-for-like revenue has increased, while group like-for-like underlying EBITDA is broadly in line with the prior corresponding period. This represents an improvement from the FY 2023 result, where group like-for-like revenue was steady and underlying EBITDA declined by 3% on the prior year. Looking at Asia, in the 1 April of FY 2024, we have seen a continued solid performance from our Singapore hub, with improvement in both revenue and earnings. As I mentioned earlier, the Hong Kong, China business was impacted by a large IPH client exiting operations in China in FY 2023. This has impacted performance for the first two months of FY 2024 relative to the prior corresponding period, which included this client.
Just putting the size of our Hong Kong, China business into context, it represents about 5% of revenue and 4% of EBITDA for the IPH group, which is about 20% of revenue and 10% of EBITDA for the Asian segment. Like-for-like revenue for the Asian segment was ahead of the prior corresponding period, while like-for-like underlying EBITDA declined slightly. Excluding the impact of this one client, like-for-like underlying EBITDA was ahead of the prior corresponding period. Pleasingly, we saw a return to positive revenue and earnings growth in Australia and New Zealand. It was particularly encouraging to see a strong overall performance from our Australian member firms during the first four months, partially offset by a steady performance in New Zealand.
Like-for-like revenue and underlying EBITDA for the first four months of FY 2024 were ahead of the prior corresponding period, an improvement from the FY 2023 result, where revenue and underlying EBITDA declined by 1% and 5% respectively. At the FY 2023 result in August, I indicated that our primary objectives, objective was for our patent filing performance to track the overall market. While we are not quite there yet, I can report, and pleased to report, that we have narrowed the gap between our filings and the Australian patent market for the first four months of FY 2024. The Australian patent filing market declined by 2.8% for FY 2024 year to date, ending at the end of October. For the same period, IPH Group Australian filings decreased by 5.3%.
This compares to a market decline of 3.3%, compared to IPH Group filing decline of 7.8% for FY 2023. Recently, we've noticed an increased focus in the market on month-to-month patent filing data. While this is an important metric, we've always counseled against assessing the business in this way, and it is certainly not the way we look at the business. For example, while IPH filings outperformed the market quite strongly in October, we were not crying from the rooftops, just as we weren't crying in our cups in September when IPH filings were below market. Of course, small numbers can make a big difference when looking at this data on a monthly basis.
For example, while IPH Group filings result in October was pleasing, as it was up approximately 1.6%, this only represents an additional 16 patent cases compared to the prior corresponding month. It's also important to recall that filings in Australia represent approximately one third of total filings made by the IPH Group. So in conclusion, IPH has made substantial progress on its growth strategy during the year. The acquisitions of Smart & Biggar and Ridout & Maybee in Canada further strengthened and diversified our earnings base while bolstering our client service offering. At the same time, we maintain market-leading positions in our existing businesses, and we remain focused on leveraging our network to drive organic growth.
We are uniquely positioned as one of the largest IP services groups and secondary IP markets to consolidate and grow our business. In closing, I wish to acknowledge and thank the IPH board, my fellow executive team, and all our people across IPH for their hard work this year. Let me also welcome, or rather echo Peter's welcome to our people in Canada. We are delighted to have you, as part of the wider IPH group. And of course, I would like to thank our shareholders for your ongoing support and to assure you of the company's continued focus on generating further shareholder value.
Thank you, Andrew. Right, before I move to the business of today's meeting, I would like to point out that the minutes of last year's AGM are available for inspection by shareholders at the end of the meeting today. The resolutions for consideration today may only be voted on by shareholders, proxy holders, and shareholder company representatives. The resolutions set out in the notice of meeting are to be considered as ordinary resolutions. Ordinary resolutions must be approved by a simple majority of the votes cast by shareholders entitled to vote and voting on the resolution. Turning to today's business, if you wish to speak to a motion or ask a question, please raise your yellow card. That's the voting shareholder card or the blue card, which is a non-voting shareholder, i.e., proxy submitted or joint holder card.
When you have been acknowledged, please identify yourself before speaking, and I would ask you that you only raise one topic at a time. The first item of business, which is item 2, the discussion of the financial statements and reports. Item 2 allows shareholders the opportunity to discuss the company's financial report, directors' report, and auditors' report for the financial year ended 30 June 2023. A resolution isn't required, but I would welcome questions from shareholders regarding the accounts and the performance of the company in general. The Corporations Act specifically provides that reasonable opportunity must be given at an AGM for the shareholders to ask the auditor questions relevant to the conduct of the audit, the preparation and content of the auditor's report, the accounting policies adopted in the financial statements, and the auditor's independence.
Mr. Hina DeLaney from Deloitte, the engagement partner with our auditors, is present at today's meeting and will be available to answer any such questions. Questions should be initially addressed to me. Any questions to be answered by the auditor should be restricted to matters I've just outlined. If you wish to ask, wish to address the meeting, please use the microphone provided and speak clearly. Also, before asking your question, please state your name and any affiliation that you may have. Are there any questions relating to the financial statements? There's a question here. Microphone just coming from behind you.
My name is Kevin Daley, Mr. Chairman. I was going to ask you about the company's debt level, but you addressed that adequately in your opening address. So I'll move on to my second question, which has to do with Deadly Science. That's an awful name, but it's an organization that you're donating money to, and it has a worthwhile purpose of encouraging the study by Aboriginal students of STEM subjects at school. So what I want to ask you about it is, how much are you donating to that company? And why and which of your entities is actually making the donation? Because at their website, I couldn't see who was actually making the donation. It wasn't IPH directly, but if you're donating, it must have been one of your entities. So how much were you donating, and through which entity?
Thank you for the question. I might have to refer that question on. Andrew?
I can probably make some comment on that, Chairman, in that it's an ongoing partnership at the moment, Mr. Daley, and that we're still in negotiation to get an approval of our reconciliation action plan. And as part of that is the engagement with Deadly Science, which I agree, I'm a great believer in the STEM story as well, and we've done something similar with the Beacon Foundation over the last few years also, which focuses on the high school students, primarily from disadvantaged socioeconomic groups, focused on STEM. But the RAP, as they call it, continues to evolve with us, with getting approval from that group, and Deadly Science is certainly one that we're focused on being part of. So you may not have seen that payment because I think we're still in the process of, you know, finalizing our Reconciliation Action Plan.
Just to follow up on Mr. Daley's question, which entity will any donation come from? Will it come from IPH?
It would come from IPH. We just haven't made it yet.
Could I just ask another question while I'm holding the microphone?
You certainly can.
You make acquisitions in the second-tier markets, and I'm just wondering if India and Brazil are within your purview for that?
Well, we look at opportunities everywhere. We're really looking for markets where the major driver is the secondary markets that we talk about rather than the primary markets. But we do look at a whole range of different countries, so I don't think there's anything that's not on our potential list from that perspective. Any other questions? If not, we will move on to item three. Item three on the agenda is the election of Mr. David Wiadrowski as a director. Mr. Wiadrowski is a highly experienced director, and details of his skills and experience are set out in the notice of meeting.
Mr. Wiadrowski is currently a director of carsales.com Limited, oOh!media Limited, and Life360, Inc. Mr. Wiadrowski has over 25 years' experience as a partner of PwC, and has extensive experience working with companies in the technology, infocomms, and entertainment and media industries. I now move that Mr. Wiadrowski is, being eligible, be elected as a director of the company. The motion is open for discussion, and I would like to also like to invite Mr. Wiadrowski to introduce himself to the meeting and provide a brief statement outlining his skills and experience. David, if you can.
Thank you, Peter. Thank you, Peter, and very much delighted to be here this morning, and good morning to you all. I'm delighted to offer myself for election to the board of IPH Limited. I believe I've got the relevant executive and non-executive director experience to add value and complement the skills of the existing board of IPH, which is a very strong board. Peter's taken a lot of my thunder, but sorry to be a little bit repetitive, but obviously, prior to being a non-executive director, which I started in 2017, I was a senior assurance partner at PwC, and spent a fair bit of time working in the technology and media practice, and have significant experience and knowledge of financial reporting, technical accounting, and audit, along with risk management and transaction skills.
in addition to that, as Peter alluded to, I had various leadership roles, including being the chief operating officer of the assurance business, which at that time was an AUD 500 million business with 160 fellow partners, that at times were challenging to manage, and 2,000 staff. I did spend some time in Indonesia in the early stages of my career as a partner, and in 2010, was invited back to sit on the governance board of the Indonesian firm when they decided to separate from the Australian firm, and so I worked very closely with them, going through some of those challenges of separation, developing their own strategy, and learning to stand on their own feet.
As Peter said, I currently sit on three public company boards, and I also sit on the Cambodian Children's Fund, which I'm very passionate about. I believe I've got the time and capacity to manage all of these commitments, and certainly that's reflected in my attendance at my existing boards, where I've managed to go to all of the board meetings and all of the committee meetings. On these boards, I chair the audit committees, and I'm a member of the risk committee at carsales.com and a member of the remuneration committee at oOh!media.
I've also been an active member of the due diligence committee at carsales.com in the last 18 months, where we've done three capital raises to fund three major acquisitions. I'm a hands-on director. Sometimes executives don't like that, but I like to get involved outside of the formal board meetings, mainly to, you know, enhance my understanding of the business, to make sure my knowledge of the business is appropriate, and more importantly, to support the leadership team in delivering and executing on our business strategy. I'm very much excited about this opportunity, and I look forward to your support today. Thank you.
Thank you, David. Are there any questions relating to this resolution? I put the motion to a vote. Please now mark for, against, or abstain next to resolution three on your yellow voting card. I advise that the proxy votes shown on the screen have been received. I propose to vote all undirected proxies in favor of this resolution. Thank you. The results of the poll will be advised to the ASX as soon as possible after the conclusion of today's meeting. Agenda item four A, ratification of the previous share issue in relation to the acquisition of Smart & Biggar. The next item on the agenda is the approval of the ratification of previous share issue in relation to the acquisition of Smart & Biggar. Sorry to be repetitive.
The resolution, as outlined in the notice of meeting, is that the issue of ordinary shares to the Smart & Biggar vendors on the 20th of April, 2023, on achievement of the earn-out, and otherwise as described in the explanatory memorandum, be ratified and approved for the purposes of the ASX listing rule 7.4 and for all other purposes. I now move that the issue of shares to the Smart & Biggar vendors be ratified and approved. Are there any questions in relation to this resolution? I put the motion to a vote. Please now mark for, against, or abstain next to the resolution 4A on your yellow voting card. I advise that the proxy votes as shown on the screen have been received. I propose to vote all undirected proxies in favor of this resolution.
The results of the poll will be advised to the ASX as soon as possible after the conclusion of this meeting. Agenda item 4B. The next item on the agenda is the approval of the ratification of previous share issues with respect to the acquisition of Applied Marks. The resolution, as outlined in the notice of meeting, is that the issue of ordinary shares to the Applied Marks vendors on 18 August 2023, on achievement of the earn-out, and otherwise as described in the explanatory memorandum, be ratified and approved for the purposes of ASX Listing Rule 7.4, and all, and for all other purposes. I now move that the issue of shares to the Applied Marks vendors be ratified and approved. Are there any questions in relation to this resolution? I put the motion to a vote.
Please now vote for, against, or abstain next to the resolution 4B on your yellow voting cards. I advise that the proxy votes, as shown on the screen, have been received, and I propose to vote all undirected proxies in favor of this resolution. The results of the poll will be advised to the ASX as soon as possible after the conclusion of this meeting. Item 4C. This item on the agenda is for the approval of the ratification of previous share issues in respect of the acquisition of Ridout & Maybee.
The resolution, as outlined in the notice of meeting, is that the issue of ordinary shares to the Ridout & Maybee vendors on 29 September 2023, on completion of the acquisition, and otherwise, as described in the explanatory memorandum, be ratified and approved for the purposes of ASX Listing Rule 7.4 and for all other purposes. I now move that the issue of shares to the Ridout & Maybee vendors be ratified and approved. Are there any questions in relation to this resolution? I put the motion to a vote. Please mark for, against, or abstain next to the resolution 4C on the yellow voting cards. I advise that the proxy votes, as shown on the screen, have been received, and I propose to vote all undirected proxies in favor of this resolution.
The results of the poll will be advised to the ASX as soon as possible after the conclusion of this meeting. Agenda item five. The next item on the agenda is the approval of the grant of performance rights to Dr. Andrew Blattman. The resolution, as outlined in the notice of meeting, is that the award of 241,301 performance rights to Dr. Andrew Blattman, in accordance with the terms of the incentive plan, and otherwise, on the terms and conditions as set out in the explanatory memorandum, be approved for all purposes. ASX Listing Rule 10.14 provides that a company may only permit a director or associate of a director to acquire securities under an employment incentive scheme if the acquisition of those securities is approved by an ordinary resolution of shareholders.
As a director of the company, ASX Listing Rule 10.14 will therefore apply to the issue of any performance rights to Dr. Blattman. Before moving this resolution, I want to make some brief remarks. As has been mentioned at previous AGMs, the directors carefully consider the amount and composition of remuneration for Dr. Andrew Blattman, including against available remuneration benchmarks for like businesses and roles, and accompanying strategic, short, and medium-term objectives. Following such consideration, the directors have determined that a significant portion of the total potential remuneration of Dr. Blattman should be in the form of long-term incentive opportunities, so as to further align the interests of Dr. Blattman with the interests of the company and its shareholders. I now move that 241,301 performance rights be granted to Dr. Andrew Blattman.
Are there any questions in relation to this resolution? I put the motion to a vote. Please now mark for, against, or abstain next to resolution 5 on your yellow voting card. I advise that the proxy votes, as shown on the screen, have been received, and I propose to vote all undirected proxies in favor of this resolution. The results of the poll will be advised to the ASX as soon as possible after the conclusion of this meeting. Agenda item 6. This resolution is the adoption of the company's remuneration report. The remuneration report forms part of the director's report and starts at page 87 on the annual report. This report contains considerable detail about the company's remuneration strategy, policy, and emoluments for directors and executives, so I do not propose to go over it at this meeting.
I note that the shareholder vote on this resolution is advisory and does not bind directors or the company. I now move that the remuneration report, which forms part of the directors' report in respect of the financial year ended 30 June 2023, be adopted. Are there any questions in relation to this resolution? I put the motion to a vote. Please now mark for, against, or abstain next to resolution six on your yellow voting card. I advise that the proxy votes, as shown on the screen, have been received, and I propose to vote all undirected proxies in favor of this resolution. The poll results will be advised to the ASX after the conclusion of this meeting. That completes the formal business of the meeting, but we now have time for some general questions. So are there.
If you wish to ask a question, please raise your hand, and I'll do my best to recognize you in a timely manner. Please use the microphone and speak clearly so that all can hear. Also, before asking your question, please state your name and any affiliation you may have. Are there any general questions? If not, I think that brings us to the end of the meeting. Please hand your yellow voting card to the Link Market Services representatives to enable them to calculate the results of the polls. As there being no further business, that concludes this year's annual general meeting. On behalf of the board, I would like to thank you for your support and now declare the meeting and the polls closed. The results of the polls will be announced to the ASX later today. Thank you very much for your attention.