Management & Leadership

Capital Calls: Birkenstock flop

11 Oct 2023

Concise views on global finance: The sandal maker took a tumble, as its shares opened more than 10% below the IPO price, leaving questions about its venue and valuation.

Disney has a weak hand in activist rematch

9 Oct 2023

The $152 bln media giant promised cost cuts to sate cage-rattler Nelson Peltz earlier this year. But that is slow-going and the stock has since fallen by a quarter while peers are up. Now the activist is back and wants a board seat. A weakened Disney’s best bet: invite him in.

Siemens is case study in China de-risking dilemma

4 Oct 2023

The $110 bln conglomerate trades well below the sum of its parts. The normal fix would be to offload low-margin areas like its legacy railway division. But Siemens has a patchy record on M&A, and its growth story largely depends on China – from which it is obliged to de-risk.

European listing exodus is just beginning

28 Sep 2023

Building materials firm CRH and packaging giant Smurfit Kappa are among a growing list of companies seeking to decamp from Europe to US exchanges. In this Viewsroom podcast, Breakingviews columnists discuss what is prompting groups to leave and why the rot is unlikely to ease.

Rupert Murdoch will redefine chair emeritus

21 Sep 2023

The 92-year-old media mogul is ceding his role co-running the Fox and News Corp boards, accepting the retirement honorific as his son Lachlan takes charge. By tiptoeing out, he at least cements succession. There can be no doubt, however, that his ongoing presence will be felt.

How Ukraine’s banks can survive another war

19 Sep 2023

The country’s former central bank Governor Valeria Gontareva explains on The Exchange podcast how the radical steps implemented in 2014 helped Ukrainian lenders withstand the Russian invasion and kept the financial system afloat, and why Ukraine needs to keep reforming.

Capital Calls: Planet Fitness

18 Sep 2023

Concise views on global finance: The gym chain’s share price hit a three-year low on news of its longtime boss’s exit. Rising interest rates have made it costlier to open new locations. Boosting prices could help, as it has at rival Life Time.

Prosus CEO exit leaves Tencent elephant in room

18 Sep 2023

Bob van Dijk has quit as boss of the $380 bln Chinese giant’s top investor. Interim CEO Ervin Tu can call for more asset sales to boost Prosus’ returns. But without a plan to move on from a status quo where Tencent makes up three-quarters of the portfolio, its valuation will lag.

SocGen chief gives investors risky cold shower

18 Sep 2023

The 19 bln euro French bank’s new CEO Slawomir Krupa wants his bank to run with lower costs by 2026. Société Générale’s below-par valuation might then recover. But lowly growth forecasts in the meantime make this an unappetising blend of thin gruel today, with only future hope.

AstraZeneca succession sickness demands urgent fix

15 Sep 2023

The drug giant’s shares lost $9 bln after a report that Pascal Soriot will retire next year. His track record of drug discovery, savvy dealmaking and a 448% return since 2012 suggest investors are right to be worried. A clearer plan for his replacement would help.

Lazard’s new CEO dares to evoke Bruce Wasserstein

14 Sep 2023

Peter Orszag aims to double revenue to about $5 bln by 2030 while delivering at least a 10% annual shareholder return. The firm’s recent history suggests the plan is bold. But it’s as good a time as any to heed the advice its former boss famously gave clients: “Dare to be great.”

BP CEO exit raises strategy and board questions

14 Sep 2023

Bernard Looney resigned after he failed to disclose past relationships with staff. In this Viewsroom podcast, Breakingviews columnists debate what that means for the oil giant’s commitment to net zero, and whether BP’s board did all it could have done.

BP succession fail puts spotlight on its board

14 Sep 2023

Chair Helge Lund and his colleagues could have lined up a replacement for now-departed boss Bernard Looney when issues over his conduct surfaced last year. They didn’t. Before rushing to appoint a new CEO at the $110 bln oil group, they should interrogate their own performance.

BP CEO’s exit brings strategic impasse to a head

13 Sep 2023

Bernard Looney quit as the $112 bln oil group’s boss over past relationships with colleagues. BP shares lagged rivals during his tenure due to an ill-timed pivot to green energy. His replacement will have to decide whether to stick with the strategy, or pivot back to oil and gas.

Grocers learn lessons of ‘greedflation’ drama

12 Sep 2023

Food-price rises are easing, which is good news for supermarkets that stand accused of profiting from consumer pain. In this Exchange podcast, Ahold Delhaize CEO Frans Muller explains why demand for own-brand goods gives the Dutch group an upper hand in supplier negotiations.

Daniel Zhang leaves Alibaba under a cloud

11 Sep 2023

The $230 bln e-commerce group’s outgoing boss has also stepped down as chief of its key computer services unit. The sudden decision upends what seemed a smooth transition of power. It may also delay AliCloud’s spinoff, and with it hopes of boosting the parent company’s valuation.

Drugstores lack obvious remedy for what ails them

5 Sep 2023

Walgreens boss Roz Brewer is leaving after her efforts to diversify the $20 bln company, including in-house doctors, delivered only spotty results. Rivals had the same idea, lifting the cost. Online retailers also are squeezing the business. More urgent care looks necessary.

Qantas CEO’s exit will barely reduce turbulence

5 Sep 2023

Alan Joyce hopes retiring early from the airline will “accelerate its renewal” after months of scrutiny culminating in a watchdog accusing it of bad conduct. But real change won’t come cheap for his successor. And more sacrifices from the board's long haulers are likely.

Asia’s richest banker makes a meal of succession

4 Sep 2023

Uday Kotak has quit early as CEO of his $43 bln lender. He seems to be pitching it as a way for Kotak Mahindra Bank to appoint a replacement free from his interference. But he’s on the board and the firm’s biggest shareholder. And his legacy is tied to whoever takes his spot.

Fortescue founder toys with reverse greenwashing

1 Sep 2023

Andrew Forrest has lost a CEO, a CFO and a top adviser this week. The tycoon says people only quit his $43 bln miner if they disagree with its zero emissions goal. Change and the energy transition can be disruptive. But his absolutist twist to climate spin homes in on a new risk.