London Stock Exchange Group PLC (LSE:LSEG) said feedback from shareholders following protests over the 25% pay rise awarded to its chief executive has confirmed that its major shareholders are backing the salary increase.
In addition to the proposed increase in his base annual salary to around GBP1mln, announced in the company’s annual report for 2020, CEO David Schwimmer has a maximum annual “bonus opportunity” of 225% of his annual salary, while his 2021 long-term incentive plan ceiling is 300%.
LSE justified the pay rise by saying its US$27bn takeover of data provider Refinitiv had made it a “significantly larger, more international and complex business”.
But the Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) pressure group urged shareholders to vote against the pay package at the annual general meeting on 28 April this year.
At the AGM, 76.5% of shareholders voted in favour of Schwimmer’s pay rise. However, LSE noted at the time that although shareholders were broadly supportive of the pay package, it recognised that “certain shareholders would have preferred the increase to have been phased”.
The company said it would engage with its shareholders and consider all feedback.
In a statement issued today to update investors on the engagement process, LSE said “the large majority of shareholders continue to support the decision and recommendations of the remuneration committee as the group becomes a significantly larger and global business”.
