QBE chairman defends remuneration model
QBE chairman John Cloney has written to shareholders defending the big insurer's remuneration arrangements in the face of criticism leveled by risk management specialist, Risk Metrics.
In his letter, released to the Australian Securities Exchange, Cloney defends the retirement benefits being granted to QBE chief executive Frank O'Halloran and makes clear that with O'Halloran's agreement, they have been amended to a lump sum payment of one year's annual base salary.
Previously, O'Halloran's arrangement had involved a lump sum payment of 150 per cent of his total remuneration cost being his annual base salary plus his short-term cash incentive for the year prior to the date of his retirement.
Cloney's letter also complains that the Risk Metric reports give the impression that there are no hurdles with respect to QBE's Deferred Compensation Plan and argues "the reality is significant targets need to be achieved to earn a short-term cash incentive".
He pointed out that the new Group Executive Restricted Share Plan also only applied where there was super performance, meaning a return on equity above 22 per cent.
Cloney's letter then argued that the wealth of the chief executive ought to be irrelevant to whether investors voted for or against the remuneration report.
AUTHOR
Mike Taylor
Recommended for you
Net cash flow on AMP’s platforms saw a substantial jump in the last quarter to $740 million, while its new digital advice offering boosted flows to superannuation and investment.
Insignia Financial has provided an update on the status of its private equity bidders as an initial six-week due diligence period comes to an end.
A judge has detailed how individuals lent as much as $1.1 million each to former financial adviser Anthony Del Vecchio, only learning when they contacted his employer that nothing had ever been invested.
Having rejected the possibility of an IPO, Mason Stevens’ CEO details why the wealth platform went down the PE route and how it intends to accelerate its growth ambitions in financial advice.
