Billionaire Brothers to Join Board of JBS
(Bloomberg) — Brazilian billionaire brothers Joesley and Wesley Batista were named to the board of JBS SA, paving the way for their return to the family’s meat empire after years of absence following a massive corruption scandal.
The brothers will take two extra seats on the board of the world’s largest processor of animal protein, the company said in a filing late on Tuesday. Independent directors would still be the majority on the board, with seven of a total 11 seats, it said. The Batistas’ nominations are pending formal approval by shareholders at a meeting next month.
The brothers led JBS’s expansion overseas by gobbling up rivals including Swift & Co., the beef-producing units of Smithfield Foods Inc., and the US chicken producer Pilgrim’s Pride Corp., transforming the company their father founded as a small butchery more than 70 years ago. They left JBS in 2017 after confessing to bribery as part of a widespread corruption scandal in Brazil, spending several months in jail in 2017 and 2018 amid insider trading allegations before being acquitted last year.
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