In "Stunning Decision" Bayer Shareholders Dump CEO Over Disastrous Monsanto Purchase
Bayer, also known as IG Farben back in the day, survived World War II (which it helped fund for Hitler's war effort while recruiting a an army of slave workers), but it may not survive the worst acquisition in its history: the disastrous $63 billion purchase of Monsanto in 2018, which also brought over the infamous carcinogenic weed-killer Roundup, and with it countless lawsuits and legal charges.
And while the future of the iconic company which brought "cough medicine" Heroin to the world remains in question, as it is slowly been buried under an avalanche of lawsuits emerging from Monsanto's legacy misdeeds which have slammed its stock to 7 year lows…that of its CEO appears to be now sealed.
Late on Friday, in what Bloomberg called a "stunning development" for the German drugs and chemicals company, a majority, or about 55% of shareholders, voted against absolving CEO Werner Baumann and other managers of responsibility for their actions in the Monsanto takeover last year. Though the result isn’t legally binding, it throws his future into question and prompted an immediate supervisory board session. Similar rejections have cost German CEOs their jobs.
“Mr. Baumann, what have you done with our stable company?,” said Joachim Kregel, a representative of German shareholders association SdK. In just two years, “the erstwhile pharma giant has mutated into a dwarf,” said Ingo Speich, chief of sustainability and corporate governance at Deka Investment.
https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2019-04-26/stunning-decision-bayer-shareholders-dump-ceo-over-disastrous-monsanto-purchase