RBS chairman favoured as next GSK head
pharmafile | August 8, 2014 | News story | Medical Communications, Research and Development, Sales and Marketing | China, GSK, RBS, Sir Christopher Gent
The Royal Bank of Scotland’s current head Sir Philip Hampton is the most likely candidate to take over as the new chairman of GlaxoSmithKline.
This is according to people familiar with the matter who have been speaking to several British newspapers this week.
Talking with the Financial Times, they say an appointment is likely to be announced in the ‘next few months’, and take effect next year. Sir Philip would take over from Sir Christopher Gent, who was formerly chief executive of Vodafone.
Sir Philip took over as RBS chairman in 2009 after the bank was forced to ask for a £45 billion state bailout during the height of the financial crisis.
His remit was tough: Sir Philip had to not only steer RBS through choppy financial waters, but also deal with the fallout of its previous chief executive Fred Goodwin (also known via the moniker ‘Fred the shred’ after making large cuts in the firm) who stepped down in early 2009, just as it was announced that the firm had lost £24 billion in 2008 under his watch.
But it may be a case of out of the pan and into the fire given the ongoing problems facing GSK, the most prominent – and public – of which is the China scandal, where the firm was accused last year of spending more than £300 million on bribes to doctors in order to increase prescriptions.
More allegations have come thick and fast against the firm, including lurid details over sex tapes and ‘sexual bribery’.
This week could also prove to heighten the pressure on the firm as a private investigator for GSK, Peter Humphrey, and his wife, begin a public trial today on allegations they were spying on Chinese officials whilst working for the London-based company.
Humphrey has already come out deriding GSK and its former China boss Mark Reilly, who hired him to investigate a secret sex tape made of him and his Chinese girlfriend, which was later sent to GSK’s bosses.
He is expected to plead guilty and has already apologised on China’s state-owned CCTV television for breaking any Chinese law.
Outside of this are arguably greater corporate concerns, including the ongoing manufacturing woes of a number of its plants, and poor financial results fuelled by a worrying weakness in its respiratory portfolio, traditionally its strongest growth driver.
Sir Christopher confirmed in May that he intended to step down at the end of 2015, with his successor to be named before the end of this year.
Sir Philip would be likely to join the GSK board ahead of any formal handover, if the rumours are true, and will need to call on all of his experience at RBS to help GSK through what may be a tough few years.
Ben Adams
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