Nice Volume Today, page-62

I believe this to be correct.

When options expire the ASX is notified and the market too. Sadly I hold other stock where options expire. The upside is you don't get diluted but the reason is because they are not performing as envisaged.

BASE the shares sold by management were options purchased for a price marginally below the prevailing share price of the day.

If you held 50,000,000 5c options and the SP was 10 then you can exercise those options for $1,000,000 and sell half of the shares for $1,000,000 thus retaining 25,000,000 at a net cost of $0.00. The larger the marging the better more they retain.

I believe that is precisely what CN did (with different numbers of course but the same principle). She sold whatever it was to enable a net cost of $0 or near to it.

I also believe that the fact she limited it to a cost neutral transaction could be viewed as a positive rather than a negative.

Not everyone has $1,000,000 lying around spare and I would likely do exactly the same in that position. They still have plenty.