German giant’s bonus haul after £1bn Bank loan

GERMAN chemicals giant BASF has paid its directors and staff a bonus worth €360 million (£312 million) after borrowing £ 1 billion from the Bank of England.

The £ 51 billion manufacturer – which operates around the globe and at 11 UK locations, including at plants i n Bradford i n West Yorkshire and Alfreton in Derbyshire – said part of the payout was based on a ‘recognition and appreciation’ bonus.

In an upbeat statement on Friday, BASF also said it would pay its investors a €3 billion final dividend – the same as last year.

It said a ‘year-end rally’ meant full-year sales beat expectations. However, the disruption earlier in the year meant underlying performance targets were not met, so the board changed the threshold for payouts by a special resolution.

BASF’s emergency Bank of England loan, which is guaranteed by the Treasury, was the biggest handed to any corporation in the heat of the crisis. The loan scheme for large companies allowed foreign firms to apply if they had a material presence in the UK.

Concern over firms handing out bonuses and dividends while borrowing cheaply from the central bank prompted the Treasury to tighten rules on the taxpayerbacked loan agreements in May.

But Covid Corporate Financing Facility loans taken before then, including BASF’s giant debt, are not covered by the restrictions on rewarding executives or investors.

The Mail on Sunday revealed last month that the US owner of Boots gave its billionaire boss Stefano Pessina a windfall of almost £50 million just days after the pharmacy giant drew £300 million from the loan scheme. Last month, Boots’ owner, Walgreens Boots Alliance, signalled another dividend payment – its biggest quarterly payout ever – taking the total paid during the crisis to more than £1 billion.

BASF said it intended to repay its loan next month and pointed out it would not pay the bonus windfall to staff and directors until May.

When asked about the ‘appreciation’ bonus, BASF said: ‘This year’s bonus payment is due to a discretionary decision of the board of directors in appreciation of the outstanding work of the BASF team worldwide.’ BASF chairman Dr Martin Brudermüller said in a separate statement: ‘With this bonus, we want to acknowledge the huge effort put in by the BASF team in the pandemic year 2020, which was difficult for everyone.’

He said of the dividend: ‘A reliable dividend payment is a priority for us, even in difficult times.’