🇿🇦 English, 15 October 2026, executive perks
South African CEOs Receive Higher Bonuses and Share Awards
Median pay for CEOs of the JSE's 200 largest companies rose to R23.2-million as bonuses jumped 42%.
The median total remuneration for CEOs of JSE Top 200 companies climbed to R23.2-million, with chief financial officer pay rising 7% to R13.5-million. Incentives did the heavy lifting, with annual bonuses jumping 42% to a median R9.2-million for CEOs. Long-term incentives, typically share awards earned over several years, rose 67% to a median R9.8-million for CEOs.
The report also describes the perks companies use when they cannot match market salaries, including personal and family security measures such as armoured vehicles and protection against digital and cyber threats. The threat is growing as criminals use AI tools to impersonate people convincingly, including senior executives.
Shareholders largely waved the increases through, with no remuneration policy and only 0.6% of implementation reports rejected by a majority of shareholders.