Wrap of IperionX 2025 board nomination
November 3, 2025
Here's the wrap of how the 2025 run at the IperionX board came to pass.
IperionX (IPX) is a fast-growing dual-listed US titanium play which is benefitting from the scramble to establish a non-Chinese supply chain in rare earths and critical minerals, including from direct US Government funding.
It came across my radar for being a Perth-based outfit doing last day physical AGMs with an executive chair and a history of placements that weren't followed by an SPP for retail shareholders.
So, I bought the minimum 61 shares at $8.31 a pop on October 3.
Nominations closed at 5pm Perth time on October 10 and this strong 3 part nomination letter was emailed through at 4.30pm Melbourne time on the last possible day calling for hybrid AGMs, an independent chair and no more placements without SPPs.
There was no communication from the company seeking any clarification or confirming that the nomination had been accepted. There still hasn't been.
They're running a 9am physical AGM in Perth, the world's most isolated city, on Friday November 28, the last possible day of the AGM season. An incredible 212 ASX listed companies held their AGM on the equivalent day in 2024, the majority being Perth-based resources industry companies like IperionX.
I picked out Iperionx (IPX) because they're one of the biggest last day laggards, with their market cap having soared to almost $3 billion when the stock peaked at more than $9 on October 15, just before my board nomination became public. It has been all down hill since with the stock closing at $6.80 on October 31, giving it a market cap of $2.27 billion.
At the physical AGM they ran in Perth on November 22 last year, three of the directors, including executive chair Todd Harrigan, were comfortably re-elected and the biggest protest vote was 11% against the remuneration report.
The latest annual report discloses that some of the management team are among the top 20 shareholders. For instance, I've just made these additions to The Mayne Report Rich List:
Todd Hannigan: is the executive chair of Iperionx which describes his background as follows: "has over 25 years of global experience in natural resources as company founder, CEO, private capital investor and non-executive director. In these lead roles Mr Hannigan has helped build multiple billion-dollar companies in the private and public markets. Mr. Hannigan has worked internationally in the extraction and resources sector for Aston Resources, Xstrata Coal, Hanson PLC, BHP Billiton and MIM. Mr Hannigan holds a Bachelor of Engineering (Mining) from The University of Queensland and an MBA from INSEAD." The latest IperionX annual report says on page 68 that he owns 25.4 million ordinary shares which were worth $228m when the stock peaked at $9 on October 15.
Anastasios (Taso) Arima: The current CEO of IperionX which describes his background as follows: "Mr Arima founded Piedmont Lithium (NASDAQ: PLL) and was instrumental in securing the funding that enabled the company to grow into one of the most critical lithium chemical projects in the United States and ultimately list on the NASDAQ stock exchange. Mr Arima was born in Greece and emigrated to Perth, Western Australia where he attended the University of Western Australia and studied a Bachelor of Commerce and a Bachelor of Engineering." The latest IperionX annual report says on page 68 that he owns 11.4 million ordinary shares which were worth $102.6m when the stock peaked at $9 on October 15.
Dominic Allen: graduated in Commerce from the University of WA, started out at Rio Tinto in Perth and then made his money in small cap land, primarily as chief commercial officer of US-based titanium flyer IperionX where he appears in the top 20 (see page 120 of the 2024-25 annual report). His 2.67m shares were worth $24 million when the stock peaked at $9 on October 15, 2025.
The company's main Australian bank is NAB, the Perth office of PwC looks after the audit and Thomson Geer handles the Australian legals. The lawyers certainly got on the front foot in this Notice of Meeting which dropped on October 23.
For starters, they've decided to put the entire board up for election after "feedback from shareholders". This is understandable because it is dual listed on the NASDAQ and the SEC requires US listed companies put all directors up for election each year.
There was also a very detailed rebuttal of the platform on pages 12-14 laying out in great detail why I'm not suitable and how they manage everything from capital raisings to holdings AGMs and having an executive chair.
From a governance point of view, IperionX is one of the most closely watched newly emerging members of the ASX200.
The emergence of index investing means that one of the most lucrative public company exercises going around is being a fast-growing, aggressively marketed operation that can soar into the ASX300, at which point the various insiders, promoters and major shareholders have willing buyers in the index funds if they wish to exit.
The IperionX journey through the indices has been as follows:
September 2024: added to the ASX300.
September 2025: added to the ASX200, a promotion which sparked the share surged to the record high above $9 on October 15, when its market cap peaked at around $3 billion.
Like many over-hyped, soaring loss-making companies promising big things in a fast moving space, the company is popular with short sellers as the October 28 ASIC update showed that 21.2 million shares had been sold short or 6.32% of issued capital.
The capital raising history has been very poor. Here are the 4 entries on the shame file for companies which do placements with no follow on SPP for retail shareholders:
IperionX (IPX), November 2023: the aspiring US titanium producer completed a $26.3m placement at $1.25 with no follow-up SPP for retail holders.
IperionX (IPX), May 2024: completed a $50m placement at $1.91 with no follow up SPP for retail holders. Bell Potter and Cannacord assisted.
IperionX (IPX), October 2024: $100m placement at $3.20 with no SPP for retail. The pricing was a 7.2% discount to the previous close of $3.45 and the brokers were Bell Potter and Petra Capital. They held an EGM in Perth on December 11 to approve the overall placement and an issue to executive chair Todd Hannigan. The stock was at $4.52 by December 11 meaning the 2,300 shareholders missed out from the lack of an SPP. Have been added to this “placement only shame file”.
IperionX (IPX), July 2025: $70m placement at $5, a 6% discount to the last close of $5.30, to advance its development of titanium products for the US department of Defence.
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