JPMorgan Chase shareholders have voted against the bank’s executive pay plan, delivering a stinging rebuke to chief executive Jamie Dimon and his management team.
In a “say on pay” vote at the bank’s annual meeting yesterday, only 31 per cent of investors voted in favour of JPMorgan’s 2021 plan, which included a total $201.8mn package for six top executives. Dimon alone stands to make $50mn from a one-off special award.
It is the first time the bank’s board has lost such a vote since it was introduced in 2009. The lowest previous level of investor support in executive remuneration votes had been 61.4 per cent in 2015. In the equivalent vote in 2021, 90 per cent of shareholders voted in support of executive payouts.
Of particular concern for investors this year was the award to Dimon, which the bank had said reflected the board’s desire for the executive, whose wealth is estimated at $1.6bn by Forbes, to stay at the bank for a “significant number of years”. Dimon, 66, has been chief executive since 2005.
The vote is non-binding, but the bank said in its proxy filing ahead of the meeting that its compensation and management development committee “will take into account the outcome of the vote when considering future executive compensation arrangements”.
Thanks for all your emails following yesterday’s interview with the New York City mayor. If you have any other thoughts about this email please contact me at firstft@ft.com. Here’s the rest of today’s news — Gordon
Five more stories in the news
1. Pennsylvania primary too close to call Less than 1 percentage point separates television doctor Mehmet Oz and former hedge fund executive David McCormick in the fight to be the Republican US Senate candidate from Pennsylvania. The closely fought primary has been seen as a crucial test of Donald Trump’s influence over the Republican party.
2. Sweden and Finland apply to join Nato The head of Nato declared that Finland and Sweden would increase Europe’s security as the two Nordic countries formally submitted their applications to join the transatlantic defence alliance. US Treasury secretary Janet Yellen, meanwhile, is in talks with EU and G7 allies on a potential price cap or tariff on Russian oil.
3. Joe Biden condemns ‘poison’ of white supremacy In a hastily arranged visit to Buffalo to meet a predominantly black community in mourning following the racially motivated mass shooting at the weekend, the US president condemned the “hateful and perverse ideology” running through US politics. ‘It’s like the devil came to town’, said one mourner as residents try to come to terms with America’s latest racist attack.
4. Nike’s diversity chief to leave company after 2 years Felicia Mayo, who has served as chief talent, diversity and culture officer at the world’s largest sportswear maker since July 2020, will leave the company at the end of July, according to an internal email and people familiar with the matter. For more news on the business of sport sign up to our Scoreboard email.
5. Casino mogul accused by US of lobbying on behalf of China Steve Wynn, who helped transform Las Vegas and Macau into booming gambling centres, has been accused by the US justice department of lobbying the Trump administration on behalf of the Chinese government to deport a prominent critic from the US to China. Lawyers acting for Wynn denied the allegations.
-
In other news from China: Cash-strapped local governments have been forced to divert funds from poverty alleviation and infrastructure to underwrite coronavirus testing as Xi Jinping’s zero-Covid policy worsens financial strains.
The day ahead
Economic data Annual inflation in Canada is expected to have risen at the fastest pace since 1991 last month. Economists expect the year-over-year inflation rate for April to be up 6.7 per cent. The UK has become the latest western economy to reveal inflation is running at levels not seen for decades. The consumer price index hit 9 per cent in April, it was revealed this morning, well above the Bank of England’s 2 per cent target.
-
Go deeper: Almost all central bankers in the US and Europe agree rates must rise to tackle soaring inflation. What is open for debate is where they should stop.
Monetary policy Patrick Harker, the president of the Philadelphia branch of the Federal Reserve, will discuss the economic outlook at a virtual event hosted by the Mid-Size Bank Coalition of America.
Company earnings Target will report first-quarter earnings before the bell, one day after competitor Walmart’s shares plummeted on news that it cut its full-year guidance. Home improvement retailer Lowe’s and department store operator TJX Companies also report earnings this morning. Cisco and Bath & Body Works will report after the bell.
What else we’re reading
Pimco: navigating the end of the bond bull market After a three-decade boom, investors have pulled a combined $100bn out of US bond mutual funds and exchange traded funds this year. Nowhere are the prospects of a downturn in the fixed-income market being more closely watched than at Pimco, the US group founded by “bond king” Bill Gross that pioneered active bond trading.
Biden’s China strategy cannot work with weapons alone The asymmetry of Biden’s China policy increases the danger of what everyone fears — a conflict with China, writes Edward Luce. A superpower that is happy to discuss military aid and weapons, but reluctant to talk of trade and investment, is telling both partners and foes that it speaks just one language.
-
Go deeper: China has led the world in supercomputing for years and now it has made a new breakthrough in so-called exascale supercomputers that can handle 10 to the power of 18 calculations per second.
How can Covid affect the human brain? The cognitive impairment caused by severe Covid-19 is comparable with the decline that takes place between the ages of 50 and 70 or the equivalent of losing 10 IQ points, scientists have suggested. Global health editor Sarah Neville rounds up the latest research on the neurological effects of the disease.
The mauling of Tiger Global Last year, Chase Coleman wrote to investors to celebrate the 20-year record of Tiger Global, one of the biggest winners from a technology bull market that had run since the financial crisis. Now, the best-known of the Tiger cub firms has become the highest-profile hedge fund casualty of the tech stock hammering.
How leaders find a way in chaotic times The path of the Russia-Ukraine conflict has called into question the strategic directions of many companies, Andrew Hill writes. Should companies that have taken an unexpected blow to the head — as Vladimir Putin’s armed forces have done — stick to their path or change course?
Travel
The FT’s Unhedged author Robert Armstrong shrugs off the wolves of Wall Street to wrestle tuna in Bahía Solano, Colombia. “Some fishing trips are better than others,” he says. “A trip to Black Sands Lodge is as good as they come.”
Source: ft.com
