This Indian CEO Has Bagged A 'Staggering' Elon Musk-Like Pay Package
NDTV
Under the agreement, Chief Executive Officer Jagdeep Singh could receive stock options potentially valued at as much as $2.3 billion, if the company meets various milestones.
Shareholders of QuantumScape Corp., the solid-state battery startup that went public through a blank-check deal last year, approved a multibillion-dollar pay package for its top executive that one proxy adviser called "staggering" in size.
Under the agreement, Chief Executive Officer Jagdeep Singh could receive stock options potentially valued at as much as $2.3 billion, if the company meets various milestones, according to estimates by proxy advisory firm Glass Lewis. On a webcast of QuantumScape's annual shareholder meeting Wednesday, the package passed in a preliminary vote, and the company said a final tally would be available later.
"The disclosed dollar value cost of the grant is staggering," Glass Lewis, which had urged stockholders to reject the package, wrote in a recent report. Institutional Shareholder Services, another advisory firm, also opposed it.
Large pay packages are becoming increasingly common among fast-growing startups, particularly after the success of Tesla Inc. unleashed a wave of cash in the electric vehicle market. Such pacts echo the compensation agreement that helped make Tesla CEO Elon Musk the world's richest person, said Dayna Harris, a partner at executive compensation firm Farient Advisors. At least 15 corporate leaders received awards valued at $100 million or more last year, a threefold increase from when Musk received his in 2018.
