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John Thain – CEO of Merrill Lynch

From December 1, 2007 to January 22, 2009, John Thain was the CEO of Merrill Lynch. Merrill Lynch provides investment banking, finance and insurance services, and is now a division of Bank of America. When John Thain was CEO however, Merrill Lynch was a publicly owned company, and was listed on the New York Stock Exchange. The sale to the Bank of America occurred after Merrill Lynch had billions wiped from its value during the subprime mortgage crisis of 2007/2008.

As John Thain was CEO during a time of intense public scrutiny, his salary and expenses at Merrill Lynch came under the media spotlight. In addition, in 2007, John Thain was listed as the second highest paid executive amongst the S&P 500 companies. This provides us with a good opportunity to compare what a top CEO earns in comparison with a US President.

  • Compensation (Dec 2007 to Dec 2008):
    • Base Salary: $750,000
    • Cash Signing Bonus: $15,000,000
    • Stock Grant: $33,013,151
    • Options Grant: $35,017,421
    • Total Annual Compensation:: $83,785,021
  • Office refurbishment at Merrill Lynch Headquarters Manhattan: $1.22 million[4]. These costs included:
    • $800,000 – celebrity designer Michael Smith
    • $87,000 – an area rug in Thain’s conference room
    • $44,000 – another area rug
    • $25,000 – a “mahogany pedestal table”
    • $68,000 – a “19th Century Credenza”
    • $15,000 – a sofa
    • $28,000 – four pairs of curtains
    • $87,000 – a pair of guest chairs
    • $18,000 – a “George IV Desk”
    • $2,700 – six wall sconces
    • $37,000 – six chairs in his private dining room
    • $5,000 – a mirror in his private dining room
    • $13,000 – a chandelier in the private dining room
    • $11,000 – fabric for a “Roman Shade”
    • $16,000 – a “custom coffee table”
    • $35,000 – something called a “commode on legs”
    • $24,000 – a “Regency Chairs”
    • $5,000 – “40 yards of fabric for wall panels”
    • $1,400 – and a “parchment waste can”
    • $3,000 – labor to relamp the six wall sconces
    • $30,000 – further payment to Michael Smith for expenses incurred in doing the work
    • $1,200 – a 16-inch-high contemporary parchment waste can
  • Thain’s Driver:
    • Salary: $85,000
    • Bonus: $18,000
    • Over-time: $128,000
    • Total Annual Compensation: $230,000
  • Thain’s Exit Package from Merrill Lynch: $9,700,000

Related Reading:

Footnotes:

  1. http://www.transitioning.org/2010/02/19/worlds-richest-and-best-paid/
  2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Thain
  3. http://sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/65100/000095012307015698/y42801exv10w1.htm
  4. http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2009-01-22/john-thains-87000-rug/
  5. http://www.nydailynews.com/money/2009/01/24/2009-01-24_canned_merrill_lynch_ceo_john_thains_spe.html
  6. http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2009-01-22/john-thains-87000-rug/
  7. http://news.muckety.com/2008/09/15/thains-call-initiated-bank-of-americas-bid-for-merrill-lynch/5012?rLink