Apple chief Tim Cook’s bonus soars 40pc to $10.7m

The Apple chief's pay jumped in 2020 as the company excelled through the pandemic

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Apple boss Tim Cook saw his annual bonus swell by 40pc to $10.7m (£7.72m) last year as the iPhone-maker cemented its position as one of the pandemic’s biggest winners. 

The chief executive earned a base salary of $3m on top of his bonus, which remained unchanged for previous years. His fortune is now estimated to stand at around $1.02bn after officially becoming a billionaire in August. 

Mr Cook also had a total of $281.9m in restricted stock that vested throughout 2020, according to a recent filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. He was granted the stock as part of a long-term incentive plan that was outlined when he took over as chief executive in 2011.

The 60-year-old owns 837,374 shares in Apple, equating to around 0.2pc of the total company’s stock.

Mr Cook’s pay increase follows a stellar year for Apple. In 2020, it t became the first $2 trillion US company after a stock market boom that has made tech companies more valuable than ever — despite the economic havoc wreaked by Covid-19.

In the third quarter of last year, revenue excluding iPhone sales rose 25pc year-on-year as shoppers awaited the release of the iPhone 12 series. 

Shares in the Cupertino giant rose by 78pc throughout 2020 fuelled by a boom in digital services as lockdowns sent customers rushing online to shop, work and entertain themselves.

Mr Cook’s increased pay package was part of a widespread payout to executives as the company beat internal financial targets.

The Apple chief’s total compensation of $14.8m was around 256 times greater than the median compensation at the company of $57,783. The tech boss has previously said he plans to give away most of his money to charity before he dies. 

In the SEC filing, Apple said it would change the way issued cash bonuses to make them dependent on whether executives acted with the company’s social and environmental values.

The iPhone maker did not give further details around how it would evaluate the progress made toward its green goals.

The company has outlined a number of goals, including using recycled materials in its products, as well as promoting diversity and inclusion in its workforce.

Apple said that it would introduce a modifier that could amend bonus payouts by as much as 10pc depending on executives’ performance.