My understanding is that he had continual approaches from PE and...

My understanding is that he had continual approaches from PE and had been disenchanted with public markets for years. The Glaucus report simply fast tracked his desire to take QIN private and was the catalyst to stand down when he did; he could pursue offers, some of which were well advanced, without being conflicted by his role as CEO. Over the years TFS/QIN faced many issues to do with public perception, disruptive ex-directors and short-selling / reports, all of which were damaging to TFS and a distraction which impacted performance. All of these issues, which have nothing to do with the commercial operations of the business, would not exist if TFS had been private. From what was made clear at the AGM, what Frank did not count on when he stood down was company's inability to function in his absence and their apparent desire to not work with him in taking the company private. E.g One question asked by Frank to Dalton at the AGM was along the lines of "are all proposals treated equally by the board", to which Dalton refused to provide a yes or no answer and hid behind the cover of legalities. I would have thought the answer by any board (if true) would be a resounding "yes".