Indeed, maintaining the management team was one of the key points that kept recurring throughout the merger correspondence over the past nine months.

When the deal was done to merge the two companies, 78% of shareholders voted against the resolution of £140 ($222.6) million in retention payments for Xstrata senior management.

Xstrata chief executive officer Mick Davis had already said he would not be staying to lead the merged group long term.

He has agreed, however, to take the helm for the first six months of the entity’s life before handing over to his Glencore counterpart, Ivan Glasenberg.

Xstrata chairman Sir John Bond had been set to chair the combined group but stepped down in light of the overwhelming rejection of the retention package.

“In light of shareholders’ decision not to support the board’s recommendation, I have informed the Xstrata board and Glencore’s current chairman that, once the merger has completed, I intend to instruct the board to commence an orderly process to appoint a new independent chairman of Glencore Xstrata,” he said.

Davis said Xstrata’s people would be a critical element to the merged company’s success.

“I regret the decision of shareholders not to approve these retention arrangements for the members of my senior and operational management deemed crucial to the success of the combined group as, in my view, this introduces unnecessary risks to the merged company’s future value proposition.”