Stinking rich

25 August 2010 By Christopher Swann

A $500 mln check would normally sway the minds of most mortals. But Potash CEO Bill Doyle has sat on larger sums before and held tight. With his golden parachute just 6 pct of the payoff, he has no obvious incentive to shortchange shareholders with a quick flip of the firm.

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William Doyle, the chief executive of Potash Corp of Saskatchewan, would receive around $445 million for his 1.15 percent stake in the company if BHP Billiton's offer for the company is accepted by shareholders.

BHP Billiton has offered $130 per share, a 16 percent premium to the closing share price on Aug. 16, the day before the bid approach.

Doyle, who took over as chief executive on July 1, 1999, has accumulated 3.43 million shares in the company. This includes close to 3 million unexercised options, with exercise prices as low as $10.16. The current share price of the company is $146.

Doyle is also entitled to $28 million in the event that his contract is terminated following a change of control in the company, including $7.5 million in severance and $16.8 million in accelerated stock options.

An investment of $100 in the company when Doyle took over in 1999 would now be worth $1,747.

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