Third Point: Demands Yahoo Fire CEO Scott Thompson By Monday

Yahoo Investor Demands CEO Be Canned

By Poornima Gupta

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Activist hedge fund investor Third Point demanded that internet company Yahoo Inc fire its chief executive, Scott Thompson, by Monday for padding his resume.

The hedge fund's CEO Daniel Loeb, who has been waging a public battle to place his company's nominees on Yahoo's board, also called for the resignation of board member Patti Hart, whom he had accused of claiming false degrees on her resume.

Yahoo, whose revenue slid by more than a fifth last year, brought in Thompson, PayPal's former president, as chief executive in January, five months after Carol Bartz was fired.

Yahoo spokesmen could not be immediately reached for comment.

Yahoo's board is reviewing the discrepancy in Thompson's educational record -- Yahoo's SEC filings say he has a bachelor's degree in computer science when his degree was in accounting -- after calling it an "inadvertent error."

The resume problem was revealed by Loeb, who issued an ultimatum to Yahoo on Friday demanding it sack Thompson by noon EDT on Monday.

Loeb did not say what actions he would take if the company did not meet his demand.

Third Point wants Yahoo to publicly reveal the process by which Thompson was vetted and disclose all minutes of any board meeting where his candidacy was discussed.

The hedge fund, whose 5.8 percent stake in Yahoo ranks it among the company's largest institutional shareholders, has accused Thompson of deliberately misrepresenting his education.

(Reporting By Poornima Gupta)

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