<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by DLB-GOUROCK
Picking up on a point by Martin. It already is, in a manner of speaking.

BP is a global public limited company owned by shareholders not a Government.
The largest BP shareholder: the U.S. investment firm JPMorgan Chase and is the No. 1 holder of stock in BP. That distinction also has earned the Wall Street bank the title of “Global Ultimate Owner” of the oil giant, as it owns 28.34% of BP.

How can you put blame on a Nation or a Government for a public company owned by shareholders that operates in a global environment.

Those of us who are worried that holding back dividends and falling share values will affect our pension fund should be sympathetic to our American friends with an investment in JPMorgan.

I MUST stress that my initial stance is get the thing fixed and the clean-up done. Then look at the operation of the rig and apportion who has to compensate who.


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I take several people's points about BP deriving most of its revenues from US, employing loads of US workers and being owned 39% by US pension funds (and I agree with them), but the fact remains that BP Plc is incorporated in England (so legally it is a British company) and has its main sharelisting on the London Stock Exchange. Added that I believe all, or most, of its Board are non-US and I can see why Americans would see it as a foreign company.

I think you can certainly put some blame on a nation (or it's government) if a publicly owned (or privately) company messes up big on its soil (or in its waters). Governments are there to protect the country and its inhabitants. In this case, the oversight has clearly been weak due to the demand for oil. This needs to be addressed (as well as the direct leak cause and blame) to ensure no recurrence. Let's be honest, who really thinks (now with hindsight) that a robot can plug a gushing oil hole a mile below the sea?

Regarding JPMC being the “Global Ultimate Owner” this is nonsense being distributed by the US media to an unknowing public. The largest shareholder in BP Plc is Blackrock at 6% followed by Legal & Gen, Norges Bank, Kuwait Inv Authority, BGI and M&G. JPMC, or their funds, don't even show up on the Top20. The 28% of BP shares referred to are those held by the owners within JPM's custody business. Something totally different that gives JPMC no ownership or voting rights (just like a bank holding your share certificates).

Distribution of partial or mis-information by the US media (and sadly the US administration) has been the continuing theme, much like the continued failure to plug this leak and stop the Gulf getting polluted even futher.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/n...reholders.html