Andre Yoskowitz
23 Jan 2011 3:10
Warner Music Group chairman and CEO Edgar Bronfman Jr. has been convicted and fined over insider trading.
The ruling, in French court, came as a surprise as even the prosecutor had recommended that the executive be cleared of charges due to lack of evidence.
During his time as an executive vice president for Vivendi, Bronfman was known as a "mastermind" behind giant mergers in the telecom and media markets.
The disgraced exec received a fine of $6.7 million, and a 15-month suspended jail sentence. Additionally, former Vivendi CEO Jean-Marie Messier received a 3-year suspended sentence and a $200,000 fine for similar charges including misleading shareholders.
Both execs said they will appeal the decision.
Messier turned the small water utility company into a major media group during his 8-year reign, which ended in 2002 when the board of directors of the company fired him. When he exited, the company was around 45 billion in debt, after taking on companies like Universal.
The company still has over $15 billion in debt.