Marco M. Elser Issues Open Letter to CEO Tony Yuan of Asia Pacific Wire & Cable Corporation Limited Urging Immediate Capital Allocation Reforms

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12/01/2025 - 08:00 AM

ROME--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Shareholder Marco M. Elser today issued the below open letter to Tony Yuan, Chief Executive Officer of Asia Pacific Wire & Cable Corporation Limited (NASDAQ: APWC) regarding the need for immediate capital allocation reforms and the cancellation of the recently announced rights offering.

Asia Pacific Wire & Cable Corporation Limited
2901 Dallas Parkway, Suite 360
Plano, TX 75093
Attn: Tony Yuan

December 1, 2025

Dear Mr. Yuan,

I have been a meaningful shareholder of Asia Pacific Wire & Cable Corporation Limited (NASDAQ: APWC) for nearly thirty years (since APWC’s IPO).

At a time when global electrification and surging AI-driven demand are creating unprecedented tailwinds for electrical-infrastructure companies, I am deeply troubled by the persistent decline in APWC’s share price—both in absolute terms and relative to industry peers.

APWC is uniquely positioned with substantial, in-place manufacturing capacity for power cable and electrical transmission products that are in critically high demand. Yet, despite favorable copper prices and powerful secular trends, APWC shares trade at only ~22% of tangible book value. Over the past five years, many comparable companies in the wire-and-cable sector have seen their stock prices rise by more than 400%, while APWC’s shares have declined 28%. This extreme undervaluation is a clear signal that the market has lost confidence in the Company’s capital allocation decisions.

The recently announced rights offering, which proposes to raise capital at a small fraction of the Company’s $7.50-per-share tangible book value, is the clearest possible validation of the market’s concerns about capital allocation. Rather than repurchasing deeply discounted shares or returning excess capital to owners, management has chosen to issue new shares at prices that would impose severe and immediate dilution on existing minority holders. This decision, coming when the stock already trades at only ~22% of tangible book, sends an unmistakable message that management prioritizes maintaining or expanding control over maximizing shareholder value. Far from solving the problem, the proposed offering only magnifies the very capital-allocation failures that have driven the shares to their current depressed levels.

To halt ongoing value destruction and begin restoring shareholder confidence, I respectfully urge the Board and management to take the following immediate actions:

Cancel the currently proposed rights offering and instead (a) launch an aggressive open-market share repurchase program or (b) a rights offering priced at no less than 60% of tangible book value.
Form an independent special committee to evaluate whether maintaining $137 million of copper and finished-goods inventory continues to be in shareholders’ best interests, given the Company’s historically low margins, and to explore returning excess capital to shareholders via special dividends or accelerated buybacks.
Commit to quarterly earnings conference calls and regular strategic updates in order to dramatically improve transparency with all shareholders.

I am convinced that the prompt adoption of disciplined, shareholder-friendly capital allocation policies will unlock substantial value for every owner of the Company.

Thank you for your urgent consideration. I look forward to constructive dialogue and decisive action.

Sincerely,

Marco M. Elser
marco.elser@post.harvard.edu