Roche : family adds new members to shareholder group to ensure continuity

The family shareholder group that holds a 45.01% stake in Roche on Thursday added seven members from the next generation to the group, saying the move underscored the family's desire to preserve the pharmaceutical company's independence long-term.

The shareholder pool, comprised of descendants of Roche founder Fritz Hoffman-La Roche, said the pool now counted nine fifth-generation and six fourth-generation family members.

"We can thus provide the organisation with the surety that our family, as in the past 120 years, will continue to commit to the stability of Roche's shareholding in the coming decades," Andre Hoffmann, speaker for the family shareholder pool and Roche vice-chairman, said in a statement.

(Reporting by Brenna Hughes Neghaiwi; Editing by Susan Fenton)