£500m ad boss ‘in quiz over cash for call girl’
‘Non-disclosure agreement’
MULTI-MILLIOnAIrE advertising mogul Sir Martin Sorrell was investigated for using company money to pay a prostitute, it was claimed yesterday.
A misconduct probe at the firm he founded, WPP, investigated the claim although its findings were not made public, the Wall Street Journal reported. It is unclear what the inquiry found, the paper said.
Sir Martin, 73, resigned in April after the company began its investigation into an allegation of improper personal behaviour and misuse of company assets. He has strenuously denied the allegation, which WPP said at the time did not involve large amounts of money.
The Wall Street Journal said the investigation included whether he had used company money for a prostitute. The Mail on Sunday reported the allegation involved the spending of several hundreds of pounds on a prostitute in Mayfair last June. A disgruntled chauffeur who lost his job was said to be the whistleblower.
A spokesman for Sir Martin, who is thought to be worth £500million, said he had signed a non-disclosure agreement when he left WPP ‘which he has adhered to and will continue to adhere to’. The spokesman said Sir Martin ‘strenuously denies’ the allegations in both newspapers and he was reported to be receiving legal advice about the reports. The twicemarried father of four’s abrupt departure from the firm he founded in 1985 sent shockwaves through the City and its share price has fallen.
There is speculation investors will demand more information about his resignation at WPP’s annual general meeting on Wednesday.
Chairman roberto Quarta is expected to face questions about WPP’s lack of transparency and its ongoing payments to Sir Martin. Two influential shareholder advisory groups, Glass Lewis and PIrC, have recommended investors reject the company’s remuneration report, which includes a payout to Sir Martin. He is in line to receive £14million and a long-term incentive scheme means he will also be paid around £20million over the next five years.
Weeks after his resignation, Sir Martin announced he would plough £40million into setting up a new advertising business, S4 Capital.
Yesterday a WPP spokesman said the firm could not disclose details of the allegations against Sir Martin, adding that he ‘chose to resign at the conclusion of the investigation by independent legal counsel’.