THE BOARD of investment vehicle One51 say it was not told about payments made to the company’s management.

Speaking at the company’s AGM today, non-executive director Noel Cawley said the company’s board had not been told of the payments from patent income that were later distributed to management. The payments of €1.98m, were made to nine executives from the proceeds of a patent for a paint-tin lid develoed by a subsidiary of One51.

The issue is at the centre of a dispute between One51′s CEO Phillip Lynch and dissident shareholders Gerry Killen and John Hegarty, who have stood opposed to the company’s investment strategy.

Business and Finance is also reporting that Cawley said chief executive Phillip Lynch has “an old style of corporate governance”.

A number of speakers asked questions concerning income from patents, director’s remuneration and the corporate governance of the company. One51′s chief financial officer Alan Walsh robustly defended the company’s record, frequently referring to legal advice that informed the management’s decisions

Non-executive director and Newstalk presenter Ivan Yates said he had been troubled by some of what had been recently discovered. But he said he was “excited” about the prospects for the company, citing the ‘Clear Circle’ environmental services division of the company, which is set to float for €320m. Yates added that if he failed to meet his objective of increasing shareholder value he would resign.

One51 is an investment vehicle that owns Irish Pride and a share in NTR and the Irish Continental Group.