"Even after this, a 600 million won bonus?" Samsung Electronics distributed 1.65 trillion won in stock to employees

[Financial News] The amount of stock compensation paid to employees by South Korea's top 100 companies by market capitalization has exceeded 2 trillion won so far this year through last month. Some companies are also set to issue additional shares depending on the outcome of wage negotiations in the second half, so the annual total is expected to grow further.
According to Yonhap News Agency on the 17th, a survey by corporate data research firm CEO Score found that 18 of the top 100 companies paid a total of 2.2811 trillion won in stock-based compensation to employees from January to May this year through bonuses, performance pay, restricted stock units (RSUs), and employee stock ownership associations.
That was 3.3 times higher than the 697.2 billion won recorded in the same period last year, and 1.3 times the 1.6992 trillion won paid for all of last year.
Samsung Electronics paid the largest amount of stock compensation during the period. From January to May this year, Samsung Electronics distributed 1.6503 trillion won worth of stock to employees, 4.8 times more than its total payout for all of last year. It was followed by SK hynix, with 377.1 billion won, Doosan Group with 49.4 billion won, SK Square with 47.8 billion won, Hybe with 30.7 billion won, Hyundai Motor Company with 24.6 billion won, and Kakao with 24.5 billion won.
Most of these companies implemented stock compensation through RSUs. An RSU is a system in which a company grants its own shares free of charge to employees who meet certain conditions, such as remaining with the company for a set period or achieving performance targets. Because RSUs can preserve a certain level of compensation value even if the stock price falls, more companies have recently adopted them as a way to share stock price gains with employees and encourage long-term service.
The value of stock granted to employees by major companies has risen sharply as share prices, especially in semiconductor stocks, have climbed recently. As of the end of last month, the appraised value of the stock reached 4.5242 trillion won, double the value of the shares distributed. The person who received the most stock compensation this year was Jeongwon Park, chairman of Doosan Group. Park is said to have received RSUs worth 18.8 billion won from January to May this year.
Others who followed included Noh-Jung Kwak, president and CEO of SK hynix; Roh Tae-moon, president of Samsung Electronics and head of the Device eXperience Division (DX Division); and Song Jae-seung, chief investment officer of SK Square.

bng@fnnews.com Kim Hee-sun Reporter