KEY POINTS:
The chairman and chief executive of Citigroup were heckled and booed at the financial giant's annual shareholder meeting yesterday.
The rest of the board was assailed for pocketing giant pay packages while the company lost billions of dollars on sub-prime mortgages.
Vikram Pandit, who was installed as chief executive in December, faced questions from a number of the thousands of employees made redundant in the latest round of cost-cutting and was jeered when he said that such decisions were tough to make.
And Sir Win Bischoff, the British investment banker who is now Citigroup's chairman, was booed as he repeatedly tried to cut questioners short and keep a grip on the fractious meeting.
Citigroup's shareholders vented their fury at the company's handling of the credit crisis, which led to US$20.4 ($25.5) billion in write-offs last year, a further US$9.1 billion so far this year and no guarantee that there will not be more to come.
In particular, they are angry at a savage dividend cut imposed by Pandit to help conserve cash.
And a powerful union organisation promised yesterday that it would move next year to oust the board unless it is refreshed with new blood and begins to consider major strategic changes, such as breaking up the company.
"Shareholders shouldn't be the only ones that suffer. I think the theme of this meeting is outrage at the form, size and scope of executive compensation at this company," said Rich Ferlauto of the AFL-CIO in an assault on boardroom excess that was repeatedly interrupted with applause.
Several top executives received lower pay in 2007 than the previous year, but were then awarded "retention packages" in January which ran as high as US$12 million for Gary Crittenden, chief financial officer.
- INDEPENDENT
