Saudi Arabia’s Prince Alwaleed bin Talal has revealed he is paid a salary of just SAR1 (US$0.25) per year and charges his company Kingdom Holding the same amount in annual rent.
In an interview to be published in Arabian Business on Sunday 16 December, the Kingdom Holding chairman also calls on other company bosses with significant share stakes in their businesses to take nominal salaries and have their packages directly linked to performance.
“My salary is actually very reasonable. I get paid SAR1 a year, and also I charge Kingdom Holding SAR1 a year to lease this floor at Kingdom Centre. So in six years since going public, I have earned just SAR12,” Alwaleed tells the magazine.
He adds: “That’s my salary - I take no more. I have no stock options, I take nothing. Never. To me, corporate governance is very important, it is crucial. Now all banks admire Kingdom Holding because we practice what we preach in corporate governance and they know that. I believe it is important that the chairman should be the role model to the members of his entity.
"Others are not the same because they work for a salary. But I have a big stake in the company and I benefit from the share price going up. I believe they should follow suit. I believe any chairman, CEO or high-ranking official in the company should have his or her package linked directly to the performance of the company.”
Alwaleed, through Kingdom Holding, owns stakes in companies including Citigroup, Apple, News Corporation and Twitter.
