Octavian Advisors LP said a clerical error prevented the $1 billion New York-based hedge fund from backing its own move last month to oust the supervisory board of German medical and electronics products maker Balda AG.<\/p>\n
Octavian’s failure to vote its block of shares in its own resolution dealt a blow to the hedge fund’s bid to force Balda to sell its stake in Taiwan’s TPK Holding, a maker of touch screens for Apple Inc.<\/p>\n
Octavian, which made a foray into shareholder activism late last year, believes Balda should sell its 16.1 percent stake in TPK as it’s a non-core business.<\/p>\n
But, standing in the way of Octavian’s effort is Michael Chiang, Balda’s top shareholder. Chiang also owns about 25 percent of TPK.<\/p>\n
Octavian has accused Chiang of conflict of interest, citing his stakes in both companies.<\/p>\n
The hedge fund has argued that Balda’s current supervisory board protects the interests of Chiang and his 27.6 percent stake in the German company.<\/p>\n