Mark Zuckerberg, Meta’s designated first citizen

Meta Platforms

Today 17:43

The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist.  The opinions expressed are his own.
By Robert Cyran
NEW YORK, Oct 22 (Reuters Breakingviews) - The Facebook founder doesn’t hide his admiration for Roman Emperor Augustus. An agreement allows him to sell new non-voting stock to pay a tax bill. Doing so, gives him a larger purse to pursue bigger dreams of conquest while retaining absolute control. Caveat emptor applies.
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CONTEXT NEWS
Meta Platforms said on October 21 that the board had approved a new class of non-voting stock. All Class A and B owners would be issued one new Class C share for each share held.
Founder, Chief Executive and Chair Mark Zuckerberg agreed to a deal wherein he can sell up to 20% of his Class C shares in exchange for a commitment to stay in California and remain head of the company for eight years. If he sells more of the shares, his voting stake will be reduced. The restriction on his remaining Class C shares will be lifted in steps over this period. Zuckerberg has a 60% voting stake and owns just over 13% of all shares.
The company also reported third quarter results on October 21. In the three months ending September 30, the company had $2.1 billion of negative free cash flow. Meta’s stock fell 6% in early trading on the morning of October 22.

(Editing by Jennifer Saba; Production by Pranav Kiran)
((For previous columns by the author, Reuters customers can click on CYRAN/robert.cyran@thomsonreuters.com; Reuters Messaging: robert.cyran.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))