Former BP CEO Bernard Looney is being forced to hand back $40 million in severance after he resigned in September (with a 12-month notice period) for not being transparent about his personal relationships with his employees.
In a press release on Wednesday, BP's board said it has found "serious misconduct."
Valerie Plesch/Bloomberg via Getty Images | Valerie Plesch/Bloomberg via Getty Images
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In September, the company said that it received information from an anonymous source in May 2022, which led to a review of Looney's personal relationships with staffers, per CNN.
During a July 2022 review of the claims, Looney, 53, disclosed "a small number of historical relationships with colleagues prior to becoming CEO." No breach of the company's code of conduct was found at the time.
On Wednesday, the board said Looney "misled" them, which led to his immediate dismal "without notice."
"Following careful consideration, the board has concluded that, in providing inaccurate and incomplete assurances in July 2022, Mr. Looney knowingly misled the board," the company said in Wednesday's press release. "The board has determined that this amounts to serious misconduct, and as such Mr Looney has been dismissed without notice effective on 13 December 2023."
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Following the board's decision, Looney will no longer receive a salary, pension allowance or benefits. He also won't receive his 2023 annual bonus, and he must forfeit half of the cash portion of his 2022 bonus and 6/36th of his awarded shares that vested in August 2023.
In total, he must forfeit 32,426,000 Euros or about $40 million.
Looney has worked at BP since 1991 and became CEO in July 2020.
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