The Australian MPA eliminates short-term bonuses to avoid a possible overflow of the board of directors

SYDNEY (Reuters) – The Australian company AMP Ltd (AMP.AX) said on Wednesday that it would not pay short term bonuses to most executives, which could help avoid a possible revocation of the board of directors if investors voted against its tax practices. compensation for the second year in a row.

The country's largest publicly traded badet manager has been accused of deception in a government-led investigation into misconduct in the financial sector. The company subsequently lost its president and chief executive officer and bleeding funds.

"The board understands that many of our shareholders are disappointed with AMP's business and financial performance in 2018," said President David Murray in the Wealth Manager's annual report released on Wednesday.

"Given the situation of last year, the Board decided to give no short-term incentive to the AMP Group management team in 2018", excluding the AMP Capital unit, which was not directly related to the charges made during the investigation.

The deferred portion of bonuses for a number of former executives will also be lost, Murray said.

According to AMP, shareholders voted against compensation plans last year in response to "broader issues" in the sector, as well as concerns about its compensation framework, which is being restructured said Murray.

Under Australian corporate rules, if more than a quarter of the shareholders vote against a salary proposal two years in a row, they can request the dissolution of the board of directors.

The annual report also shows that Francesco De Ferrari, who began his term on December 1, received a payment of $ 1.2 million ($ 847,440) in 2018, which corresponds to a buyout of his former employer, Credit Switzerland Group AG (CSGN.S).

During the investigation conducted by the Royal Commission last year, AMP revealed that it charged fees without rendering services and attempted to deceive the regulators. The wealth manager denied any malicious intent and said the cases were administrative.

($ 1 = $ 1.4160 Australian dollar)