Sony reveals CEO paid US$4.5m

TOKYO: Sony Corp says chief executive Howard Stringer took home US$4.5mil in the past financial year, in what will amount to one of the biggest paychecks for an executive of a Japanese firm.

Under new rules, Japanese firms this year are being forced to reveal what they pay executives who earn more than 100 million yen annually. Non-Japanese executives such as Stringer and Nissan Motor Co’s Carlos Ghosn are thought to make much more than their Japanese counterparts. — Reuters

The new rules will affect a tiny percentage of executives. Just 1.4% of directors and 8.3% of CEOs at listed companies took home more than 100 million yen in the year to March 2010, according to a survey by PriceWaterhouse Coopers.

Stringer, who has struggled to significantly boost Sony’s competitiveness since he took the top job in 2005, received 410 million yen (US$4.5mil) in fixed and performance-related pay in the past year to March, in which the company posted a net loss of 40.8 billion yen.

Vice chairman Ryoji Chubachi received 150 million yen in annual pay, the company said at its annual shareholders’ meeting. - Reuters