New York - Angered by Yahoo's (NASD: YHOO) apparent unwillingness to be acquired by Microsoft (NASD: MSFT), billionaire financier Carl Icahn, who in recent days has become one of Yahoo's largest shareholders, said on Thursday that he will launch a proxy fight for control of the company's board. He also urged the company not to pursue any other deals with companies like AOL (NYSE: TWX), which potentially could hinder an acquisition. The move could also delay any move by Microsoft to acquire AOL.

In an open letter to Yahoo chairman Roy Bostock, Icahn accused the board of acting "irrationally" by failing to accept Microsoft's $33-per-share takeover bid, which he calls "a superior alternative to Yahoo's prospects on a standalone basis."

"During the past week, a number of shareholders have asked me to lead a proxy fight to attempt to remove the current board and to establish a new board which would attempt to negotiate a successful merger with Microsoft, something that in my opinion the current board has completely botched," said Icahn.

The financier said that he has assembled a 10-person slate -- including himself, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban and former Viacom CEO Frank Biondi -- to stand for election against the current board.

Icahn said that he has acquired 59 million shares of Yahoo in the past 10 days, and is seeking regulatory clearance to buy another $2.5 billion worth of company stock.

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