Four long-serving, senior members of staff at publisher Sing Tao Holdings resigned yesterday in the first major personnel shake-up since direct investment fund Lazard Asia took over the company from Sally Aw Sian in April.
Recently appointed chief financial officer Gerry Yim Lui-fai confirmed yesterday Hong Kong Standard editor-in-chief David Wong Chun-tung, associate editor Jackie Sam and chief accountant Monica Yung Sau-yin and the group's chief accountant Andy Fung Tze-wa 'had tendered their resignation'.
Mr Yim said he did not know the reasons for their departure, but stressed that it had nothing to do with 'any misconduct, any negative feelings or actions'.
Ms Aw sold almost all her 50.04 per cent Sing Tao stake to Lazard to avoid bankruptcy proceedings launched by Hong Kong Tobacco president Charles Ho Tsu-kwok over unpaid loans of $274 million.
Lazard now controls 51.34 per cent of Sing Tao, which has two flagship papers - the English language Standard and the Chinese language Sing Tao Daily News.
'The new and old management have different culture,' Mr Yim said.
'We are working towards fresh images for both newspapers while retaining their character.' A former investment banker at Platinum Securities, Mr Yim replaced retired finance director John Bernard Wilkinson about a month ago.