Vitol Group has paid a record $2.9 billion to its executives and staff through share buybacks so far this year after the global energy trader posted its best-ever results in 2020, Bloomberg News reported. 
 
Vitol's 2020 net profit of $3.2 billion exceeded its previous record of $2.3 billion, which it last achieved in 2019, the report said, citing the company's audited annual accounts. 
 
Vitol made a significant chunk of its profits during the second quarter, when oil demand collapsed, allowing traders to buy cheap crude and store it, while locking in a profit by selling forward the oil on the futures market at higher prices, according to the report.
 
The trading house has distributed a total of nearly $19 billion through share buybacks in the past 17 years to its partners, the report added.
 
Vitol did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. --Reuters