ASDPs provide for the automatic sale of securities over fixed periods at times over which the owner has no influence, removing any suspicion that they used inside information to benefit from the timing of the sales.
RIM said that co-CEO Jim Balsillie’s ASDP provides for the donation of CAD 38m ($38.4m) of shares to certain charitable organizations and educational or research institutions, as well as the sale of CAD 86m ($86.9m) for himself.
Co-CEO Mike Lazaridis plans to donate to CAD 75m (75.8m) of shares to certain charitable organizations and educational or research institutions, as well as the sale of up to CAD 100m ($101m) for himself. In both cases, RIM said the amounts represent a small portion of the co-CEOs’ shares.
In March Balsillie quit as chairman of RIM after the company said it would write $250m off the income it earned over the last three years because of stock-option irregularities. A special committee of the board found plenty of irregularities, but concluded: We have the utmost confidence in Jim Balsillie and the senior management team.
