Eurofins Scientific SE, under pressure from short sellers, defended its practice of paying millions of euros in rent annually to its founding family for laboratory space, seeking to allay mounting concerns over its corporate governance.
Eurofins paid 26 million euros ($29.5 million) in rent last year to affiliates of Analytical Bioventures SCA, an investment company owned by Chief Executive Officer Gilles Martin, his former wife, Valerie Hanote, and his brother, Yves-Loic Martin, according to the annual report published March 5. That’s up from 24.4 million euros in 2017. The three, besides being executives, make up half of the board of ...