Who profits? (2) (More to come...)
This is The Guardian with the latest on Roche, the Swiss pharma giant that acquired the license for Tamiflu and now stands to mae huge profits out of the ... scare.
For the obsessively guarded, conservatively dressed and unflamboyant Oeri, Hoffman and Sacher families, avian flu could be good news. Over the next two years, the heirs of Fritz Hoffman, founders of Roche, one of the world's most powerful pharmaceutical companies, and who already rank as among the world's richest families, could see their combined £10 billion fortune reach giddy heights.
Twenty members of the founding family control Roche, which industry analysts estimate will benefit from the Tamiflu drug thought to relieve the symptoms of avian flu, with extra profits of £500 million this year and £1bn next.
And since the family owns about 10 per cent of shares and crucially 50.01 per cent of voting rights, they will ensure that no outside interests seize their company and enjoy the profits - though many would like to. Article continues.