The chief executive of the London Stock Exchange could receive almost £16 million if he pulls off a sale to Deutsche Börse.
Xavier Rolet, who has said that he would step down if the £20 billion deal goes through, may be able to cash more than half a million performance-linked shares.
Mr Rolet was paid £6.3 million in the year to March 31, 2014, and, according to that year’s annual report, had 560,559 shares “unvested and subject to performance conditions”, which were worth £15,992,748 on Friday.
Some of those shares may have vested during the year, while Mr Rolet may have received fresh awards. The updated figures will be published soon in the LSE’s 2015 annual report.
Senior executives’ unvested shares often crystallise if their company is taken over, even if they are linked with the ongoing performance of the business. The LSE has not yet made a decision about Mr Rolet’s shares.
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Mr Rolet said on Friday that talks with Deutsche Börse were continuing as the LSE unveiled a 58 per cent jump in profits to £288 million.
The stock exchange now finds itself being circled by several large international parties. As well as the talks with Deutsche Börse, ICE, the Atlanta-based company that owns the New York Stock Exchange, has said that it may bid, while CME, its American rival, is also widely thought to be interested in gatecrashing the deal.
If the London exchange combines with Deutsche Börse, the enlarged company would have its headquarters in London and would be run by Carsten Kengeter, the Frankfurt-based bourse’s chief executive.
Under rules guiding takeovers, Deutsche Börse has until March 22 to table a firm offer for the LSE or walk away, while ICE has until March 29. A takeover by the latter would mean a union between the London Stock Exchange and Liffe, the derivatives business, which many in the City believe has long been the LSE’s biggest missed opportunity. The stock exchange lost out on buying Liffe in 2001 to Euronext, which in turn was bought by NYSE before it was snapped up by ICE three years ago.
A London Stock Exchange spokesman said: “Our senior executives’ long-term incentive plan awards are set by the board and are subject to performance and other conditions. “These awards, announced in the 2014 annual report, are not related to, nor conditional on, the proposed merger. To suggest otherwise is completely wrong and without foundation.”
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The focus on Mr Rolet’s pay comes as a London School of Economics study of senior headhunters has found that many people believe chief executives’ pay is often “absurdly high” and that many other people could have been found to do their jobs.
Fresh analysis by the High Pay Centre has found that average remuneration for a FTSE 100 chief executive stands at £4.6 million.