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Goldman Sachs could face rowdy shareholders at its annual meeting today as the director named to head the bank’s powerful audit committee was caught in the middle of Walmart’s bribery scandal in Mexico.
Goldman director Michele Burns, who has held top posts at Marsh & McLennan and Delta Air Lines, was a board member on Walmart’s audit committee in 2005 and 2006, when the retail giant was secretly grappling with charges that its executives bribed officials to turbo-charge store growth south of the border.
This week, proxy advisory firm Glass Lewis urged Walmart shareholders to oust Burns from its board, along with other directors who were on the retailer’s audit committee at the time.
Walmart investors are slated to vote on board seats at the retailer’s shareholder meeting next Friday.
Despite the whiff of financial scandal, Goldman today is expected to confirm Burns as the head of its audit panel after naming her to its board in October, a source close to the situation said.
The bank “isn’t reconsidering” the move, the source added.
Goldman Chairman and CEO Lloyd Blankfein, who is under pressure to improve the firm’s image, announced Burns’ new role April 2 — three weeks before the Walmart scandal broke.
“She has not said anything about what she knew and when she knew it,” a disgruntled Goldman shareholder told The Post, referring to the 52-year-old Burns.
Asked whether Goldman has investigated Burns’ role in the Walmart mess since the scandal broke, a spokesman for the investment bank declined to comment. Burns, who is also a director for Cisco Systems, couldn’t be reached for comment.
“I think it would behoove Goldman to find out what happened,” said Eleanor Bloxham, chief executive of the Value Alliance, a corporate-governance consulting firm. “The question is: ‘Is she really the kind of person who will dig in and protect shareholders?’ ”