In 2011, Glencore launches its record-beaking IPO (Initial Public Offering) on the London and Hong Kong stock exchanges, becoming a publicly traded company and making billionaires out of its top executives overnight.1 Whilst this landmark change in the company’s operations provides extraordinary riches for Glencore’s management and capital for the company’s operations, it comes at the cost of forcibly increased transparency. With Glencore now obliged to hold shareholder meetings and report on business operations, there are new possibilities to hold the company to account.2
1 Kylie MacLellan, Elzio Barreto, “Glencore $11 billion IPO to make billionaires of bosses,” Reuters, May 4, 2011, https://www.reuters.com/article/us-glencore-ipo-idUSTRE7430EF20110504
2 Mines and Communities, “Glencore: The Monster Has Landed!”, May 24, 2011, http://www.minesandcommunities.org/article.php?a=10916