Musk to pay over $200 mn to fired top executives

New York: Elon Musk will be obligated to give more than $204 million in severance to the three top executives who were fired on Friday, according to a report by Dow Jones Newswire.

CEO Parag Agrawal, CFO Ned Segal and legal policy head Vijaya Gadde are covered by a "golden parachute" clause in Twitter's merger with Musk's X Holdings. According to Twitter's filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, Musk fired the three upon taking control of the social network and will have to give them more than $204 million.

Agrawal, Segal and Gadde own roughly 1.2 million shares in Twitter. The trio's $65-million stake—$34.8 million of which is owned by Gadde —would be purchased by Musk like any other shareholder's stock.

Under the "Golden Parachute Compensation" clause, the trio would automatically vest stock worth $119.6 million as severance if terminated, with the largest payout there going to Agrawal at $56 million.

The executives are also entitled to a year's salary and health benefits. In 2021, Agrawal had a base pay of $623,000, while Segal and Gadde's base pay was $600,000 each. In total, Gadde is set to walk away from Twitter with the biggest haul—nearly $74 million. Agrawal and Segal are not far behind at roughly $65 million and $66 million, the report said.