Web-Angel chief takes a pay cut

THE woman responsible for Sir Christopher Gent's controversial £6m pay package at Vodafone is taking a pay cut. Penny Hughes, chairman of struggling technology incubator fund Web-Angel, said she was taking a reduced salary after a dire year in which losses rose 18-fold to £22m.

Hughes, who also heads the Vodafone board pay committee, revealed that four of Web-Angel's investments had failed, leading to write-offs of £18.5m last year. Business development director Jens Bjaroy is quitting and non-executive directors Peter Jungen and Geoff Mott have stood down to save on costs.

Hughes seeking to sell Web-Angel, aiming for a deal at or before the interim results. Cash reserves fell from £4.8m 18 months ago to £3m today and net assets a share are 2.8p. 'Our operational priorities have been to reduce our cost base to preserve our strong cash position while remaining selective on investment opportunities,' Hughes said.