Barclays freezes share awards for ex-boss as Staley fights Epstein probe
Barclays has frozen share awards to Jes Staley, its former chief executive, as he contests the findings of an investigation into his ties with Jeffrey Epstein.
With Barclays’ 2021 financial results due to drop tomorrow morning the British bank has taken the decision not to allow a chunk of shares granted to Staley to be distributed as scheduled, Sky News first reported. Full details of changes to the remuneration package are expected be made public along with Barclays’ financial results.
In November Staley announced he would be stepping down as Barclays’ chief executive, a post he had held for six years, in order to contest the findings of an investigation by City regulators into his ties with disgraced financier Epstein. The investigation by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) reportedly focused on the way Staley characterised his relationship with Epstein to Barclays, and how the relationship was later described to the FCA by Barclays.
When Staley stepped down he received a £2.5m severance package which included £2.4m in cash and shares and a £120,000 pension allowance in addition to other undisclosed benefits.
His share holdings at the bank are worth a great deal more. According to Barclays’ 2020 annual report Staley holds 9.47m unvested shares that are subject to performance conditions and 1.9m unvested shares which are not subject to conditions. Taken together the shares are worth over £21m. He also owns 5.73m shares, worth around £10m, outright.
The frozen share awards include an award made in 2019 which was dependent on performance up until 2021 and worth as much as £3.3m, Sky News has learned.
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