Arm CEO Rene Haas in line for billion-dollar payday if chipmaker hits targets
The Proposed Pay Scheme
The chief executive of Arm is in line for a pay package that would make him a billionaire if he hits targets to turn the British microchip giant into the UK's first trillion-dollar company.
Arm, which is listed in New York but retains its global headquarters in Cambridge, has proposed a pay scheme for Rene Haas in which he will receive generous annual share awards plus a maximum bonus of $800m if he can hit certain 'exceptional growth metrics'.
The Targets
In the proposed bonus, or 'value creation plan' for Haas, 63, he will be awarded 425,000 shares if he can hit targets. The first target is a trillion-dollar valuation by 2029, reaching $1.25trn the following year and £2trn by the end of March 2031.
The Financial Impact
The payout would be one of the biggest ever awarded by a British company. Assuming the policy is approved and the targets are hit, Haas is in line to make well over $1bn in total by 2031.
- Maximum bonus: $800m
- Annual award of shares: up to 200% of salary
- Targets: $1 trillion valuation by 2029, $1.25trn by 2030, and £2trn by 2031
The Industry Impact
The eye-watering market capitalisation-based pay schemes increasingly being offered by US companies dwarf the level of rewards at UK businesses. This deal highlights the competitive nature of executive remuneration in the global technology industry.
The Future Outlook
Haas, who is pushing Arm from its core strategy of providing architecture for microchips in smartphones into developing chips for AI datacentres, has predicted that this change of tack could increase Arm's revenues fivefold.