Naturally, the issue of Executive Pay has been a consistent focus for Financial Regulation Matters , with a number of posts discussing the elements that make up such a complex issue. News recently from the automotive/technology industries concerning Elon Musk has brought the issue to the fore once more, and in this post the focus will be on the record-setting pay-deal that was recently announced by Tesla, and then what may be the effects of this for the wider issue of executive pay across the financial sectors. Yesterday, the headlines where Musk was concerned were almost writing themselves, with The Guardian ’s ‘ Elon Musk wins approval for “staggering” pay deal with potential $55bn bonus ’ headline perhaps being representative of the response to the news from Tesla. However, the deal is a complex one with a number of conditions attached, which result in the reality of the situation being somewhat different. Essentially, Tesla has decided to grant its Billionaire founder a $2....

This very brief post provides a small update on a continuing story that has been covered throughout here in Financial Regulation Matters . Tesco has been in the news a lot recently, whether that be on account of aiming to move into the ‘discount supermarket’ marketplace , or on account of a massive amount of job losses as the company goes through a restructuring process, both on the shop floor and across management . However, our focus today will be on providing an update to the ongoing attempted takeover of the wholesale firm Booker. The proposed takeover of Bookers has been a protracted one, and although the deal has been given the go-ahead, slightly controversially, from competition regulators , there are still a number of hurdles to clear before the deal can be completed. Whilst the approval from the competition regulator was a major hurdle, getting everybody on side is perhaps the largest hurdle and, in that sense, the deal still has some way to go before it can cross the...

Today’s post looks at the news that a number of extremely large institutional investors have joined forces to call for action to be taken against the tobacco companies, all for the good of societal health. For this post, the focus will be on that particular call, but also on the development of institutional investors championing social causes on the back of a concerted call from their members, together with the relative success of investors and large firms that fully commit to that ideal. However, it is important to assess whether this move by the industry is genuine, or simply a reaction to societal pressure which, in turn, shields the investors and the financial sector moreover from criticism. In April of this year, it was reported that four major institutional investors – Axa, CalPERS, Scor, and AMP Capital – were calling on their fellow investors to publicly back efforts to divest from the tobacco sector, stating that they wanted other investors to join them in supporting ‘ ...

Today’s very short post looks at the news that Goldman Sachs, having recently bought $2.8 billion’s worth of bonds issued by the Venezuelan state-owned oil company Petróleos de Venezuela (PDVSA), is being heavily criticised for doing so by opposition leaders in the country. For this short post, the actual details of this sale will be scrutinised because it reveals an understanding of the philosophy of big financial institutions like Goldman Sachs, as if that were needed at this point, which is important to consistently repeat – the acceptance of such a philosophy can never be allowed to become the ‘norm’. The obvious criticism stemming from the opposition in the economically-ravaged country that is swaying from one crisis to the next , is that the bond sale represents the Bank as ‘ aiding and abetting the country’s dictatorial regime ’ and that, ultimately, ‘ Goldman Sachs decided to make a quick buck off the suffering of the Venezuelan people ’. Now, before we continue, it ...

Today’s short post looks at the news that former RBS Chief Executive Fred Goodwin ( formerly Sir Fred Goodwin ) will, unless there is a last-minute settlement, be forced into the public limelight nearly 10 years after exiting stage-right under a cloud of controversy. On the same day as the General Election in the U.K., Fred Goodwin is scheduled to appear before the High Court in London to answer for his actions during the Financial Crisis within a civil action brought by thousands of RBS shareholders who, citing three former board members as well as Goodwin, allege that they were misled regarding the health of the bank when they took part in a £12 billion cash call in April 2008 . For this post the focus will be upon the case itself, but also the potential ramifications for RBS if their former Chief Executive’s business is aired in such a public and potentially hostile arena – as one commentator noted: Goodwin is being ‘ cross-examined by a Barrister, not a politician, and a judge w...