Midland feels heat from ousted pair

Two key figures ousted from Midland Holdings in a boardroom power struggle in the late 1990s are returning to the fray as the property broker prepares to unveil this week what may be the biggest loss since its 1995 listing.

The company's third-largest shareholder, Apex Benchmark, has recruited Joseph Ling Kwok-fai, a former executive director of Midland, as the real estate fund's financial consultant. Ling was forced to leave Midland in 1997.

His appointment, expected to be announced today, comes two weeks after the fund invited Billy Fung Yui-sum, a co-founder and former deputy chairman of Midland, to serve as a consultant. Fung was forced to step down in 1998 by the board, controlled by Freddie Wong, who remains the chairman. The board refused to renew his contract despite good results from his team focus on broking commercial properties.

The appointments are expected to pile pressure on the Midland board. Apex, which bought a 7.5 per cent stake last year, has been pushing for an overhaul of Midland's family-style management.

The pair's comeback has sparked speculation that a takeover battle for Hong Kong-listed Midland may unfold, with board critics seizing on the scale of the expected loss for 2013 to be announced on Friday.

"It hurts when I see that the performance and the market share of Midland have been declining rapidly in recent years. The frequent disputes between the existing top management and the employees reflect its mismanagement," said Fung, who set up an investment firm, Bill Fung & Ling International, with Ling after their departure.

He said it was sensible for Apex to invite him to join as a strategic consultant, given that some investors in the fund were former Midland employees.