Reuters
Volkswagen investors renew governance gripes, despite special dividend
BERLIN (Reuters) -Volkswagen shareholders renewed their criticism of CEO Oliver Blume’s dual roles on Friday, even as they prepared to rubber stamp a roughly 9.6 billion euro ($10.2 billion) special dividend following the listing of Porsche AG. Blume, who became group chief executive in September, has continued as CEO of luxury brand Porsche even after its listing, prompting concerns among some investors about the pressures on his time and potential conflicts of interest. At a shareholder meeting to approve the special dividend, Blume said Volkswagen was performing well in hard times, with his first hundred days spent on tasks such as reshuffling senior roles, defining its strategy for China and North America, and revising its software and platform strategy.
