Special shareholder incentives that damages shareholder value
There are many companies that have introduced a special shareholder incentive program. If the intent, through the free distribution of its own products or services, is to increase brand loyalty of company and to contribute to business results, this may not be an issue.
However, it is an issue if the company distributes cash vouchers such as the Quo Card as a special incentive for shareholders. This is because distribution of such cards causes (1) decline of management discipline due to an increase in the number of obedient and undemanding shareholders, and (2) violation of the principle of shareholder equality because such vouchers are essentially a cash dividend.
The Company’s president, Mr. Minami, clearly stated that the purpose of the shareholder incentive program is to attract retail investors and create long-term stable relationships with shareholders. However, as shown in the figure below, the special shareholder incentives program of Keihanshin Building has not achieved its purpose of creating stable shareholders as the shareholding ratio of retail investors has fallen significantly. It can be said such program has only increased the outflow of company assets through distribution of cash vouchers. We believe that such waste of company assets should be stopped as soon as possible.

(Source:YUHO etc.)
In gratitude for the support from shareholders, also to make the Company’s shares more attractive to investors and increase the number of shareholders who will hold the Company’s shares over the medium to long term, we established a special shareholder incentive program.
26th Feb 2015:Press release – Expansion of special incentives to give preferential treatment for continued shareholding of 2 years or more
The Company had implemented a special shareholder incentive since March 2012 with the aim of expressing gratitude for shareholders’ daily support and increasing the attractiveness of investing in the Company’s share. This time, to respond to support from our long-term shareholders, we are expanding the incentive program so that more people can deepen their understanding of the Company and will provide long-term support.
30th Jan 2019:Press Release – Change in shareholder incentive from Rice Coupons to Quo Card
These changes will be made to improve shareholder convenience, while at the same time, increasing the attractiveness of investing in the Company’s shares in the hope of encouraging more people to hold our shares. We ask for your continued support as we aim to achieve further growth to meet the expectation of our shareholders.