Cypress Executive Chairman Ray Bingham steps down from board

June 12 (Reuters) - Cypress Semiconductor Corp said on Sunday that Executive Chairman Ray Bingham has stepped down from the board, as the chipmaker wades through a brutal proxy battle.

Cypress Semi's founder and former CEO T.J. Rodgers has been running a proxy contest against the company, seeking to replace Bingham and lead independent director Eric Benhamou. Rodgers has nominated veteran tech industry board directors Daniel McCranie and Camillo Martino.

"While it saddens me to leave the board at such a time, I believe that the nature of this proxy contest has become a distraction to the company," said Bingham.

Proxy advisory firm Institutional Shareholder Services Inc recommended on Tuesday that Cypress Semiconductor shareholders vote for both board nominees put forward by Rodgers.

The recommendation urging shareholders to withhold their support only for Benhamou came as a blow to Bingham, who ISS had earlier supported.

Benhamou has also stepped down as lead independent director, but will remain on the board, the company said.

Cypress' board of directors, which has accepted Bingham's resignation, also appointed current independent director W. Steve Albrecht as its new chairman. (Reporting by Subrat Patnaik in Bengaluru; Editing by Sunil Nair)