Raphael Stevens

The bulk of Bancel’s golden parachute comes in $922.5 million in equity based on Moderna’s share price as of December.
Bancel would also receive a cash severance of $1.5 million and a bonus of $2.5 million under his change-in-control package.
Moderna President Stephen Hoge cashed out $165.9 million in stock options last year while Chief Technical Officer Juan Andres cashed out $194.3 million in options.

Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel
Steven Ferdman | Getty Images

Moderna’s board of directors approved a golden parachute for CEO Stephane Bancel worth more than $926 million at the end of last year, up from $9.4 million in 2019 before Covid-19 upended the world order.
The value of Bancel’s so-called change-in-control package has varied as a bulk of it, $922.5 million, is in the biotech company’s stock, which has swung widely over the course of the pandemic along with the company’s progress in making a vaccine to fight it. Bancel’s exit package also includes a cash severance payment of $1.5 million and a bonus of $2.5 million if the company is sold and he’s terminated.

Moderna’s shares reached an all-time high of $497.49 on Aug. 10, shortly before the Food and Drug Administration cleared booster shots of its blockbuster Covid vaccine for vulnerable people. But they were trading at $253.98 on Dec. 31 when the package was valued and have since dropped by about 45% to around $140 a share this week.
Even at that reduced share price, his exit package — which only becomes a reality only if the company’s sold and he loses his job — is eye popping. Moderna didn’t return requests for comment.
The value of the golden parachute was disclosed Wednesday in the company’s annual proxy report that details compensation packages for the company’s highest-paid executives. The filing shows the rewards for executives at the young biotech company where most of the pay is rooted in the company’s volatile equity.
His total compensation awarded for 2021 was $18.2 million, a 41% increase over 2020. Bancel’s compensation last year included $15 million in stock awards and options as well as a $1.5 million bonus on top of his $990,385 salary. Moderna spent an additional $661,000 providing personal security for Bancel and his family last year.
Moderna President Stephen Hoge’s total compensation represented a fraction of his other rewards. He cashed out $165.9 million in stock options in 2021 on top of his regular compensation. Chief Technical Officer Juan Andres similarly cashed out $194.3 million in options, outside of his usual pay.

Moderna, which was little known outside biotech circles before the pandemic, had a blockbuster 2021. The biotech company swung to profitability on the success of its vaccine for the first time last year. Moderna booked net income of $12.2 billion after reporting a loss of $747 million in 2020. Moderna’s share price soared 143% in 2021 as the company successfully rolled out its two-dose Covid vaccine.
The vaccine remains Moderna’s only commercially available product, though the company is also developing shots to fight the flu and other infectious diseases. Moderna sold $17.7 billion of its shots in 2021, accounting for virtually all of the company’s revenue. Moderna is projecting $19 billion in sales for 2022 based on signed sales agreements with governments across the world.
Hoge’s total compensation of $7.8 million includes stock awards and options totaling $6 million and bonus of $819,000 on top of his salary. Hoge’s total compensation is a 48% increase over 2020.
Andres received $6.6 million in total pay, with $5 million in stock awards and options as well as bonus of $756,000 on top of his salary. His total compensation rose 55% over 2020.
Chief Financial Officer David Meline received $5.2 million in total pay, including $4 million in stock awards and options as well as a $560,000 bonus on top of his salary. Meline’s total compensation dropped 44% from 2020.
Moderna fired its chief commercial officer Corinne Le Goff last year. The company, in its proxy report, said it is looking for someone with more experience in consumer health. Le Goff received a severance payment of $1 million.

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Moderna has been sharply criticized by activist groups such as Oxfam for profiting from the vaccine while not doing more to share its technology with poorer nations. Oxfam America, which owns 376 shares of Moderna common stock, has filed a proposal for the annual shareholders meeting to assess the feasibility of transferring the biotech company’s intellectual property to boost vaccine production in the developing world. Moderna holds its meeting on April 28.
“We believe backlash from Moderna not sharing information needed to manufacture its vaccine in low- and middle-income countries could tarnish its reputation, threaten its social license to operate, and undermine relations with the U.S. government,” Oxfam’s proposal read.
Moderna’s board of directors has called on shareholders to vote against the proposal. The board, in its rebuttal, argued that Oxfam’s recommendation would have a negative impact on the safety and quality of the vaccine as well as long-term confidence in the messenger RNA technology the shots use.
Moderna is currently locked in a patent dispute with the National Institutes of Health, which helped develop the vaccine, over the technology underlying the shots. White House chief medical advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci, in a call with reporters last week, suggested the NIH would license the technology globally if it wins the dispute with Moderna.
Moderna’s board said the company has agreed to supply 650 million doses to Covax, an international alliance that promotes better access to Covid vaccination in lower and middle income countries. Moderna has also said it will not enforce its Covid-related patents during the pandemic. The biotech company has also reached a preliminary agreement with Kenya to build a vaccine production in the East African nation to support immunization in Africa.

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Electric vehicle maker Rivian plans to use new types of battery cells in its electric trucks, delivery vans and SUVs, the company said Thursday in a 2021 fourth-quarter shareholder letter.
Its new battery cells will be made with high nickel, and lithium iron phosphate (LFP) chemistries. LFP cells will be used in Rivian’s standard battery packs.
The company is following in the footsteps of Tesla and several Chinese automakers by adopting LFP battery cells for its standard-level battery packs.

R.J. Scaringe, Rivian’s CEO, introduces the world to his company’s R1T all-electric pickup and all-electric R1S SUV at the Los Angeles Auto Show in Los Angeles, California, November 27, 2018.
Mike Blake | Reuters

Electric vehicle maker Rivian plans to use new types of battery cells in its electric trucks, delivery vans and SUVs the company said Thursday in a 2021 fourth-quarter shareholder letter. These include cells made with lithium iron phosphate (LFP) chemistry for its standard-level vehicles, and high-nickel chemistry for its longer-range vehicles.
LFP battery cells do not require any nickel or cobalt, which can be expensive or hard to obtain. They are also generally considered more stable, but less energy-dense, than nickel cobalt aluminum oxide cells, which had been used by Tesla and other automakers in electric vehicles. While they can be fully discharged and charged without as much damage to the cell over time, LFP batteries do not generally deliver the same range as NCA and other types.

High-nickel chemistry batteries, meanwhile, are more energy dense, can be charged more quickly and deliver more miles per charge for a pack of the same or less weight made with these cells.
Rivian founder and CEO RJ Scaringe explained on an earnings call after hours on Thursday that the company and its suppliers are facing a variety of constraints due to the Covid pandemic, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and their impacts on global supply chains. He said Rivian was “looking at one of the most challenging supply chain environments the automotive industry had ever seen.”
Scaringe said that the first LFP cell is being sourced through a partner, which he did not name, but said that the company is “also developing in-house battery chemistries and battery production capabilities.”
Rivian Commercial Vehicles, such as the EDV-700 it developed for Amazon, should have “similar daily range capabilities with LFP chemistry, and this chemistry provides meaningful cost savings for us,” Rivian wrote in its shareholder letter.

Read more about electric vehicles from CNBC Pro

In its consumer electric vehicles, including the R1T pickup and R1S SUV, Rivian expects an estimated range of over 260 miles with the LFP-based standard battery pack.

Tesla announced plans to switch to LFP battery cells for its standard battery packs in October 2021, and both companies are following in the footsteps of Chinese electric vehicle and battery manufacturers. The technology has been generally promoted in China, and as battery researchers Roskill have noted, around 95% of LFP cathode manufacturing is based in China. Eliminating cobalt means reducing reliance on suppliers where forced labor is still a concern. Cobalt extraction is still largely concentrated in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where it is linked to human rights abuses and child labor.
Rivian is aiming to produce 25,000 battery electric vehicles in 2022 and aims to deliver its 55,000th vehicle within 2023.
The company’s shares dropped more than 12% after hours on Thursday after the company missed Wall Street’s fourth-quarter earnings expectations and forecast a modest increase in vehicle production for 2022.

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Nio used a shortcut to complete its Hong Kong listing less than two weeks after plans were announced
The company chose not to raise new capital with the Hong Kong listing, unlike two key rivals that listed last year.
Nio joins other U.S.-listed Chinese companies that have added Hong Kong listings to hedge against possible delisting amid U.S.-China tensions.

Nio’s et5 electric sedan is set to begin deliveries in Sept. 2022.

Shares of Chinese electric-vehicle maker Nio began trading on Hong Kong’s exchange on Thursday, after the company chose a shortcut path to listing that didn’t involve raising new funds.
That path, referred to as a listing “by way of introduction,” allowed Nio’s shares to begin trading less than two weeks after it announced its plan to list in Hong Kong. The stock closed at HK$158.90 in its first day of trading, compared to a close of $20.17 ($HK157.72) for its New York-listed American depositary shares on Wednesday.

Nio’s U.S.-listed shares rallied to close up about 12.2% on Wednesday, but were still down about 36.3% this year through Wednesday’s close.
Nio joins a growing list of U.S.-traded Chinese companies that have chosen to list on Hong Kong’s exchange in recent months, seen as a way to hedge against the risk of being delisted from U.S. exchanges amid growing U.S.-China tensions. Two of Nio’s U.S.-traded domestic rivals, Xpeng and Li Auto, both listed on the Hong Kong exchange last year.
Chinese ride-hailing company DiDi Global, under pressure from its home government, announced plans to delist from the New York Stock Exchange in December.
Both Xpeng and Li Auto chose more traditional paths to their Hong Kong listings, raising $2.1 billion and $1.5 billion respectively. But Nio, which ended the third quarter of 2021 with $7.3 billion in cash on hand and raised an additional $1.7 billion in an at-the-market offering in New York in November, didn’t feel the need to raise further cash with its Hong Kong trading debut.
Nio will report its fourth-quarter and full-year 2021 earnings after the U.S. markets close March 24.

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The U.S. is extending a requirement that masks are worn on planes, trains and other forms of transportation until the middle of next month.
The mandate was set to expire March 19.
The short extension suggests the U.S. is considering lifting the mandate this spring.

A sign reads “Wear A Mask” at the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S., on Tuesday, Dec. 21, 2021.
Elijah Nouvelage | Bloomberg | Getty Images

The Transportation Security Administration is extending a federal requirement that travelers wear masks on airplanes, at airports, on trains and buses through April 18, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday.
The mandate was set to expire on March 19.

An extension of the mandate comes as the Biden administration, cities and states have rolled back mask mandates and other pandemic policies elsewhere as Covid cases drop.
The shorter extension of the policy compared with previous announcements suggests President Joe Biden and the CDC are weighing whether to lift the mandate entirely this spring, if Covid cases continue to fall.
The CDC plans to work with government agencies over the next month to “help inform a revised policy framework for when, and under what circumstances, masks should be required in the public transportation corridor,” it said in a statement.

The CDC said the new rules will be based on Covid cases, new variant risk “and the latest science.”
Airlines and other travel industry groups last month urged the White House to lift Covid testing requirements for inbound international travelers, including returning U.S. citizens, as some countries, such as the U.K., loosen entry requirements.

The U.S. Travel Association, whose members include big hotel chains, airlines and tourism boards, on Thursday again pressed the Biden administration to lift the mask rules and scrap the international Covid test requirement.
“The travel industry continues to be challenged with a slow economic recovery even with improved public health metrics in the U.S. and medical advancements, especially in the business and international travel segments,” it said in a statement. “The Biden administration can help to normalize travel conditions in their April 18 framework by repealing both the pre-departure testing requirement for vaccinated international inbound air travelers and the federal mask mandate.”
The White House and CDC didn’t comment.
The Biden administration ordered air, bus and rail travelers to wear masks, including at airports and train stations, shortly after the president took office in January 2021. The government repeatedly extended it over the past year, mostly recently in December.
Airlines had issued their own requirements since spring 2020, at the start of the pandemic, but then-President Donald Trump didn’t issue a government mandate, which labor unions had pushed for then.
More than 71% of the record 5,981 reports of unruly airline passenger behavior last year have been tied to disputes over mask mandates, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.
The Transport Workers Union, the second-largest U.S. airline union, said it supported federal guidance based on CDC recommendations but said “it should not be overlooked that the mask mandate has led to increased incidents of aggressive behavior from airline passengers.”
Reports of harassment and even assault have increased during the pandemic.
“Unruly passengers were an issue that our members dealt with before the pandemic, but we have seen this behavior dramatically increase over the past two years since mask mandates were enacted,” the union said. “Regardless of how the TSA moves forward after April, any violence against flight crew should not be tolerated, and measures should be put in place to better protect them.”
A spokeswoman for the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, the country’s largest flight attendant union, said the AFA did not ask the Biden administration to extend the mandate.
“Some Flight Attendants have said they want the mask mandate extended and others have been adamant that they do not,” said the AFA in a statement. The union represents some 50,000 cabin crew members at United, Spirit, Hawaiian and others. 
“We continue to advise the public of the role of Flight Attendants so that the public is not focusing frustrations on the crew, in response to any of our safety instructions,” the union said.

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Peloton’s new chief executive, Barry McCarthy, has only been at the helm of the connected fitness company for about a month, but he’s already testing ways to make the business more profitable.
On Friday, the company will start to trial a new pricing system, where customers pay a single monthly fee for both their workout equipment and for access to on-demand fitness classes.
The test will run for a period of time in Texas, Florida, Minnesota and Denver, for monthly fees ranging between $60 and $100.
Peloton also announced the hire of Andrew Rendich, former chief operating officer of the e-commerce company Grove Collaborative, as its chief supply chain officer.

A Peloton stationary bike for sale at the company’s showroom in Dedham, Massachusetts, U.S., on Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2021.
Adam Glanzman | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Peloton’s new chief executive, Barry McCarthy, has only been at the helm of the connected fitness company for about a month. But he’s already testing ways to lure new customers and make the business more profitable. And he’s also refreshing the circle of executives who sit closest to him.
Peloton confirmed to CNBC that on Friday it will start to trial a new pricing system, where customers pay a single monthly fee for both their workout equipment and for access to Peloton’s on-demand fitness classes. Should a user choose to cancel, Peloton would take back the Bike.

The test will run for a period of time in Texas, Florida, Minnesota and Denver, for monthly fees ranging between $60 and $100. Customers will only be able to choose this option through Peloton’s brick-and-mortar stores, or its fitness studios, and not online.
Peloton also announced Thursday that it has hired Andrew Rendich, former chief operating officer of the e-commerce company Grove Collaborative, as its chief supply chain officer, effective next week. It also said that its current global head of people, Shari Eaton, has been promoted to chief people officer, reporting directly to McCarthy.
The company is trying to win over skeptical investors. At least one Wall Street analyst has already questioned whether the new pricing plan could end up weighing on Peloton’s brand and finances. The company’s shares are down 80% over the past 12 months. In recent weeks, the stock has been trading below its IPO price of $29, and closed Thursday at $22.61.
Peloton spokeswoman Amelise Lane said Peloton created the limited-time pilot in select markets in the United States to explore various pricing models and options for new members.
“This aligns with Peloton’s belief that intuition drives testing and data drives decision making as the company sets course for the next phase of its evolution and growth,” Lane said in an emailed statement.

Peloton members who also own a piece of the company’s equipment pay a monthly fee of $39 to access workout classes, including cycling, meditation, yoga and running. Digital-only members pay $12.99 per month.
The bigger upfront expense comes with the company’s equipment. Peloton’s original Bike currently costs $1,745, including delivery and setup fees, while its Bike+ retails for $2,495. The company last August had cut the price of its Bike by about 20% to $1,495, not including delivery, hoping to appeal to more consumers with a cheaper option. It also offers financing through Affirm.
McCarthy has already made it very clear, too, that prices could fall further as he aims to grow Peloton’s user base beyond the Covid pandemic.
The former Netflix and Spotify exec, who took over the CEO role from Peloton co-founder John Foley, has been tasked with getting Peloton back to profitability, as the company grapples with waning demand for at-home workout products and heightened supply chain expenses.
Rendich, Peloton’s incoming supply chain chief, also notably served more than 12 years with Netflix, including chief service and operations officer roles.
“I think there’s enormous opportunity for us to flex the business model and dramatically increase the [total addressable market] for new members by lowering the cost of entry and playing around with the relationship between the monthly recurring revenue and the upfront revenue,” McCarthy said in an interview with CNBC’s Jim Cramer last month.
While the bundled pricing strategy is only a test, and it’s unclear if and when Peloton would incorporate this idea permanently, BMO Capital Markets analyst Simeon Siegel raised questions about the damage it could do to Peloton’s financials and to its brand image.
“For a company that has been plagued with logistic issues, they are now effectively allowing people to return their piece of equipment, at a moment’s notice,” Siegel said. “They’re actually throwing themselves more into the delivery and logistics game. Rather than walking away from it.”
Further, Siegel said Peloton has, to its credit, been able to keep churn rates so low because people don’t want to quit the service once they make such a significant purchase for one of its bikes or treadmill machines. Peloton’s average net monthly connected fitness churn was 0.79% in the latest period.
“But if it becomes easy to cancel, and easy to return, what’s that going to do to churn?” Siegel said. “Does Peloton become a winter experience for customers who every year rent the bike for four months, and then give it back when the weather’s nice? That becomes a very expensive customer.”
One user also asked in a Reddit thread about the pricing test if Peloton would, as a result, change the membership fee for people who already own the company’s equipment.
As of Dec. 31, Peloton counted 2.77 million connected fitness subscribers. It has more than 6.6 million total members, including those people who only pay for access to its workout classes.
In another bid to win customers, Peloton recently extended its free at-home trial for its Bike, Bike+ and Tread machines to 100 days from 30.
The company also has new cardio products on the way, including a strength training device called Peloton Guide and a rowing machine. By manufacturing a suite of connected fitness options, Peloton aims to be a tougher competitor to rivals such as Hydrow, Tonal and Lululemon’s Mirror. Its hope is that people who already own a Bike or a Tread will buy more stuff within the Peloton ecosystem, including its own apparel.
When McCarthy took over as CEO, he wrote in a memo to employees that Peloton had to find ways to drive growth. “And that will require us to take risks, to be willing to fail quickly, to learn quickly, to adapt and evolve quickly, rinse and repeat,” he said.
The Wall Street Journal first reported on the pricing tests.

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Baseball is back. MLB owners and players have reached a tentative deal on a new labor pact.
A person familiar with the matter told CNBC that the agreement is subject to ratification.
MLB’s luxury tax line will also start at $230 million and increase to $244 million in the fifth year of the new pact. In the last CBA, the tax line was $210 million.
The season is now slated to start April 7.

Major League Baseball and the sport’s players union on Thursday reached a tentative labor deal that would pave the way for spring training games to begin and Opening Day to take place in early April.
A person familiar with the matter told CNBC that the agreement is subject to ratification. Twenty-three of MLB’s 30 owners must approve the deal. The players association’s executive committee and player representatives voted to OK the agreement.

The breakthrough came 99 days into the owner-imposed lockout of players after the sides failed to reach a new collective bargaining agreement. Spring training had been canceled.
The season had originally been set to start March 31. Owners canceled the start of the season last week after they couldn’t reach a deal with players by a league-imposed deadline.

Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred, left, and Major League Baseball Players Association executive director Tony Clark speak before Game 1 in baseball’s World Series between the Houston Astros and the Atlanta Braves, Oct. 26, 2021, in Houston.
Ron Blum | AP

Now the season is set to begin April 7, according to ESPN, which first reported the agreement. The season would be extended three days, and the schedule would include multiple doubleheaders to make up for potential lost games.
The sports news network reported that players can start to report to spring training as early as Friday. Spring training games could start as soon as March 18.
Wednesday night, MLB owners had said they would cancel more games and push Opening Day until April 14, absent a deal.

Among the sticking points were how far to expand the number of teams participating in the playoffs. The new format will include 12 teams in the postseason, up from 10. The National League will also adopt the designated hitter role, which means that pitchers will no longer have to hit in that league’s games.
In addition, MLB’s minimum salary will start at $700,000 and increase $20,000 per year over the life of the five-year agreement. MLB’s luxury tax line will also start at $230 million and increase to $244 million in the fifth year of the new pact. In the last CBA, the tax line was $210 million.
The sides also agreed on a $50 million bonus pool for prearbitration players who meet the statistical criteria. In its proposal last week, MLB offered $30 million.
And on the gameplay front, a pitcher’s clock and limiting defensive shifts will be added starting in 2023. The changes could help improve game action and cut down on duration.
MLB also secured another revenue stream as jerseys ads are now allowed via the new agreement. The uniform sponsorships are estimated to be worth $11 million per MLB team, according to measurement company Nielsen. Because players would wear the patches, MLB needed to negotiate permission.
The National Basketball Association, Major League Soccer and the National Hockey League already feature patch ads on jerseys.
Free agency and player signings are set to resume later Thursday after the agreement is finalized.
MLB owners had been getting the lion’s share of the blame for the lockout.
A study released by research firm Morning Consult said 45% of fans blamed MLB owners for failure to reach a new agreement. That’s up from 33% who blamed owners for the dispute around the shortened 2020 season. Twenty-one percent blamed the players.
Following the Dec. 2 lockout, Labor talks persisted throughout February and at times were tense — with one bargaining session lasting only 15 minutes. The lack of progress forced MLB to cancel spring training games scheduled to start on Feb. 26. MLB then delayed Opening Day.
The lockout marked MLB’s ninth work stoppage in its history and the first in 27 years. 

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