Mittal wants to be the Ford of steel
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London, Sep 4 (PTI) India-born steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal plans to turn his company, rated the world's largest, into a family dynasty to become the Ford of steel.
Mittal, the richest man in Britain, said Ford was a good model for the company, which produces 51 million tonnes of steel annually and was listed last year.
"The Ford brand still exists after 100 years and it is a professionally run company. And if any family member has an interest in running the company, he has an opportunity to do it," he told The Sunday Times newspaper.
But Mittal's tight grip over the company could put off some investors, the report said. He and his family control 88 per cent of the shares of Mittal Steel.
Global investment banking and security firm Goldman Sachs had last week summed up his problem in one of the first research notes published on the combined group.
It said any valuation of Mittal Steel should include a 15 per cent discount because of the strength of family control, the number of insiders on the board (four out of nine) and the position of Aditya, Mittal's son, who is both president and chief financial officer.
In the wide-ranging interview, Mittal also rejected any impropriety in his donations to the ruling Labour party, saying there was no connection between his donations to Labour and his business activities.
In July he gave the party 2 million pounds, having given 125,000 pounds four years ago. It transpired then that Tony Blair had written a letter in support of Mittal's purchase of Sidex, the Romanian steel group. PTI
source
Mittal, the richest man in Britain, said Ford was a good model for the company, which produces 51 million tonnes of steel annually and was listed last year.
"The Ford brand still exists after 100 years and it is a professionally run company. And if any family member has an interest in running the company, he has an opportunity to do it," he told The Sunday Times newspaper.
But Mittal's tight grip over the company could put off some investors, the report said. He and his family control 88 per cent of the shares of Mittal Steel.
Global investment banking and security firm Goldman Sachs had last week summed up his problem in one of the first research notes published on the combined group.
It said any valuation of Mittal Steel should include a 15 per cent discount because of the strength of family control, the number of insiders on the board (four out of nine) and the position of Aditya, Mittal's son, who is both president and chief financial officer.
In the wide-ranging interview, Mittal also rejected any impropriety in his donations to the ruling Labour party, saying there was no connection between his donations to Labour and his business activities.
In July he gave the party 2 million pounds, having given 125,000 pounds four years ago. It transpired then that Tony Blair had written a letter in support of Mittal's purchase of Sidex, the Romanian steel group. PTI
source
posted by Dragos Novac @ 9:21 AM
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