Salaries of CAC 40 executives reach record highs in 2021

If the salary of the boss of Stellantis has been controversial, he is not the only one to reach heights. The average compensation of CAC 40 executives reached record highs in 2021, according to a report by the specialized company Scalens, published on Wednesday April 20. On average, a leader of one of the companies included in this stock market index earned 8.7 million euros in 2021, according to figures from Scalens, consulted by AFP. An amount that has increased by 60% compared to 2019 – and which has doubled compared to 2020, the year in which the health crisis had forced many companies to tighten their belts.

Two parameters explain this increase: first, “the new guard” leaders “pays much more” according to the report, hence a jump of 19% in the fixed part of the salary. There is also an even greater increase in exceptional bonuses, which reached 2.1 million euros per manager on average. To earn some of these bonuses, leaders had to meet non-financial goals, but these were sometimes judged “too easy” to be achieved by investors, according to Scalens.

This increase comes as the revenues of CAC 40 companies have also reached peaks, with nearly 160 billion euros in profits according to a calculation by AFP. France’s wealthiest people have also seen their wealth soar after the health crisis.