Glencore head of oil Alex Beard retires amid US investigations
Glencore parted ways with another of its top brass today, as the man who helped make it an oil trading giant announced he would step down amid US probes into its activities.
Alex Beard, 52, who has been head of oil since 2007, will leave at the end of the month.
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The FTSE-listed giant has attracted the gaze of US regulators in recent years for its work in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Venezuela and Nigeria.
Last July the company was subpoenaed by the Department of Justice which asked Glencore to provide proof of how it complies with US corruption and money-laundering laws.
The DoJ’s investigation will focus on what role intermediaries played in winning contracts for Glencore, sources told Reuters.
The company’s chief executive, Ivan Glasenberg, revealed his retirement plans just months after the news broke.
Glasenberg said he could retire in the next three to five years.
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Beard joined Glencore in 1995 from BP, helping to turn the firm into one of the top three oil traders in the world.
Shares closed up 0.8 per cent today to 256.75p.