Laura Cha’s pay rises 51pc to US$420,825 at HKEX, making her one of Asia’s highest-paid exchange chiefs
- HKEX chairman’s salary still 30 per cent below that of Singapore Exchange chairman’s, Cha says
- 11 other non-executive directors also get 16 per cent pay rise
Laura Cha Shih May-lung, the first woman to head bourse operator Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited, will earn HK$3.3 million (US$420,825) in the financial year starting April 1, a 51 per cent increase over 2018, after shareholders approved new pay packages for non-executive directors in an annual general meeting on Wednesday.
Cha’s pay stood at HK$2.19 million last year, and her new pay is 57 per cent higher than Chow Chung-kong’s, her predecessor, who earned HK$2.1 million in his last year as chairman until April 2018.
Chow, who was chairman for six years, started out on HK$957,000 a year in 2012. His predecessor Ronald Arculli, was paid HK$734,000 a year, but started out on HK$180,000 a year in 2006. Charles Lee Yeh-kwong, HKEX’s first chairman, received HK$205,000 a year when he stepped down in 2006, but was paid nothing in his first two years (2000-01) in the role.
Victor Cha Mou Zing, Cha’s husband, is a prominent Hong Kong businessman. Forbes Asia estimated Victor Cha and his family were worth US$2.8 billion in 2018.
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HKEX’s 11 other non-executive directors also got a 16 per cent pay rise and their an annual pay will rise to HK$850,000 in the coming year, from HK$730,000 last year. The remuneration was approved by shareholders at the annual general meeting of the HKEX, whose shares are listed on the city’s exchange.