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Jeff Bezos, the name synonymous with Amazon and immense wealth, has paid himself a modest salary of $80,000 for nearly two decades, as reported by the New York Times. Despite being one of the wealthiest individuals globally, Bezos explained in an interview that he chose not to take more money as he already held a substantial ownership stake in the company.
Bezos justified his decision by stating that he felt adequately motivated by his ownership of over 20% of Amazon, which had seen a 10% reduction since he began selling his shares. He emphasized that he did not require additional wealth, especially considering the continuous profitability of Amazon, which continues to increase the value of his shares and generate billions for him.
Bezos is not alone in this practice among corporate leaders. Google co-founder Sergey Brin, for example, has maintained a token annual salary of $1 since 2004, relying on his ownership of millions of Class A shares in the company for his wealth accumulation. Similarly, former Oracle CEO Larry Ellison also receives a nominal $1 salary, supplemented by substantial stock options and other compensation.
Other notable figures following this trend include John Mackey of Whole Foods, Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook, and Richard Hayne of Urban Outfitters, each choosing to pay themselves minimal salaries while deriving significant compensation from their ownership stakes and other incentive plans.
In a landscape where some CEOs command multi-million-dollar salaries, these individuals stand out for their deliberate choice of minimal personal compensation, emphasizing their wealth accumulation through company ownership and performance-based incentives.
