One ex-Universal employee would have bought some pretty spectacular Christmas presents back in 2014.
Filings from parent company Vivendi have revealed that a certain senior male exec, who ended his employment contract in the third quarter of that year, received a special one-off payment of €19m – which would have exchanged into around $24m at the time.
This pay-out would have been in addition to other compensation that the individual was entitled to.
The reason for the handsome kiss-off was a long-term incentive scheme run by UMG from 2010, which rewarded a handful of key execs with ‘phantom equity units’.
Essentially, these financial gifts grew in value in accordance with UMG’s own market worth, but did not represent any stake in the business.
By the time Mr. X left UMG, his nest egg had matured to a remarkable degree.
We imagine he walked out of that building feeling rather tall on his last day.
Hmm… a senior male UMG exec who officially left the business in Q3 2014 but probably had to work a number of months’ notice.
Hmm… Very likely a high-profile exit.
Hmm.
It’s a fun guessing game.
Mr X is not the only individual to have greatly benefited from the phantom share scheme, either.
Says Vivendi: ‘In July 2015, following the renewal of the employment contract of one executive who benefited from the plan, the remaining rights under the plan vested, and an amount of €16 million ($18m) was paid as final settlement to the executive.’
That individual may or may not be CEO & Chairman Lucian Grainge, who signed a new five-year deal with Vivendi last summer.
Helped by a weak Euro and settlement payments from the likes of Pandora and Sirius XM, Universal posted record revenues in 2015 – with a billion dollars coming from streaming alone.Music Business Worldwide
