Goldman Sachs CEO David M. Solomon will get a $10 million pay cut for the bank’s involvement in the 1MDB corruption scandal.
1MDB was an investment fund set up by the Malaysian government that lost billions due to fraudulent activity.
The global fraud and corruption scheme led to a 12-year jail term for Malaysia’s ex-PM Najib Razak which he is appealing.
Goldman Sachs called its involvement in the scandal an “institutional failure”.
It helped raise $6.5 billion for 1MDB by selling bonds to investors, the proceeds of which were largely stolen.
Prosecutors alleged that senior Goldman Sachs executives ignored warning signs of fraud in their dealings with 1MDB and Jho Low, an adviser to the fund. Two Goldman bankers have been criminally charged in the scandal.
David Solomon’s pay would have been $10 million higher but for the actions its board of directors took in response to the 1MDB saga, Goldman Sachs said on January 26.
While disclosing Solomon’s salary had dropped to $17.5 million for 2020, the bank stressed that its CEO was unaware of the corruption.
David Solomon was not “involved in or aware of the firm’s participation in any illicit activity at the time… the board views the 1MDB matter as an institutional failure, inconsistent with the high expectations it has for the firm”.
His package consists of $2 million in cash base pay, a $4.65 million cash bonus, and $10.85 million in stock-based compensation.
In October, Goldman Sachs agreed to pay approximately $3 billion to government officials in four countries to end an investigation into work it performed for 1MDB. The bank collected $600 million for arranging the bond sales in 2012 and 2013.
It has spent years being investigated by regulators across the globe including those in the US, UK, Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong. In total, Goldman’s dealings with 1MDB cost the bank more than $5 billion.
Despite the costs and fines from the fallout from the 1MDB scandal, 2020 was a bumper year for Goldman’s businesses with annual revenue of $44.6 billion, its highest since 2009.
Goldman Sachs got a huge boost from the recovery in global stock markets from the depths of the coronavirus recession.
Inaki Urdangarin, King Juan Carlos of Spain’s son-in-law, is being questioned by a judge in Mallorca over a growing corruption scandal that has embarrassed the royal family.
Inaki Urdangarin, the Duke of Palma, is suspected of misusing millions of euros in public funds that were given to a charitable foundation he ran.
The duke has denied wrongdoing and has not been charged with any crime. It is the second time he has been questioned.
A crowd of protesters jeered as he arrived at the court in Palma.
Inaki Urdangarin, 45, and his former business partner Diego Torres are suspected of siphoning off money given by regional governments to the non-profit Noos Institute to organize sporting events.
It is alleged that some of the money ended up in companies controlled by the duke and in offshore bank accounts.
The events allegedly happened between 2004 and 2006, when Inaki Urdangarin stepped down as head of the institute.
Diego Torres – who was questioned by the judge last week – has also denied any wrongdoing.
Inaki Urdangarin, King Juan Carlos of Spain’s son-in-law, is being questioned by a judge in Mallorca over a growing corruption scandal that has embarrassed the royal family
Inaki Urdangarin, a former Olympic handball player, is married to King Juan Carlos’s second child, Princess Cristina. He was suspended from official royal engagements in December last year.
Anti-corruption campaigners have urged the judge to formally name Princess Cristina as a suspect, alleging that she may also have been involved.
The Spanish monarchy has tried to distance itself from the scandal.
But emails published by Spanish newspapers last week appear to show that King Juan Carlos took a close interest in his son-in-law’s business affairs.
Support for the royal family has diminished in recent years, amid criticism that is out of touch with ordinary Spaniards as they struggle with a severe economic crisis.
Last week Pere Navarro of the Catalan Socialist Party became the first prominent politician to call on King Juan Carlos to abdicate in favor of his son, Crown Prince Felipe.
King Juan Carlos is credited with guiding Spain’s transition to democracy after the death of dictator Francisco Franco in 1975.
President Vladimir Putin has dismissed Russian armed forces chief, General Nikolai Makarov, just three days after the defence minister was sacked over a corruption scandal.
General Valery Gerasimov replaces General Nikolai Makarov as the new armed forces chief of general staff.
Gen. Valery Gerasimov commanded Russian forces during the conflict in Chechnya.
Russian authorities are investigating the sale of defence ministry assets at prices below market value.
On Tuesday President Vladimir Putin dismissed defence minister Anatoly Serdyukov, replacing him with a former emergencies minister and loyal ally, Sergei Shoigu.
General Nikolai Makarov, Russian armed forces chief, dismissed by Vladimir Putin
Russian President Vladimir Putin has dismissed Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov after his ministry was caught up in a corruption scandal.
Anatoly Serdyukov has been replaced with a former emergencies minister and loyal ally to Vladimir Putin, Sergei Shoigu.
Russia’s top investigative agency is investigating the sale of ministry assets at prices below market value.
Vladimir Putin said he had removed Anatoly Serdyukov to create “conditions for an objective investigation”.
Last month, Russian investigators raided the offices of a state-controlled military contractor and began investigating the company on suspicion that it had sold assets to commercial firms at a loss of nearly 3 billion roubles ($100 million).
Oboronservice’s activities include servicing military aircraft and arms and constructing military facilities.
President Vladimir Putin has dismissed Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov after his ministry was caught up in a corruption scandal.
Anatoly Serdyukov was a furniture store executive and head of the Russian tax service before being appointed defense minister in 2007.
In the six years that Anatoly Serdyukov had been minister he had tried to reform Russia’s outdated armed forces by cutting costs and personnel and by boosting efficiency.
But he had made enemies along the way, and fell out with his own father-in-law, the former deputy prime minister Viktor Zubkov.
Anatoly Serdyukov may now face questioning as part of the fraud investigation.
This website has updated its privacy policy in compliance with EU GDPR 2016/679. Please read this to review the updates about which personal data we collect on our site. By continuing to use this site, you are agreeing to our updated policy. AcceptRejectRead More
Privacy & Cookies Policy
Privacy Overview
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
