BT Group chief executive Ben Verwaayen saw his total pay rise 12pc to £1.69m in the year to March as the telecoms company also locked the Dutchman in a set of golden handcuffs. Verwaayen's basic pay was unchanged at £700,000, but his annual cash bonus rose from £448,000 to £784,000 as the company reported strong results on the back of new broadband services.
After the departure of BT Retail chief executive Pierre Danon, the company handed Verwaayen fresh incentives to stay at the helm. As a result, his deferred bonus leapt from £224,000 to £1.31m.
The bonus is in free shares, which he can access if he is still in the role in three years' time. Ian Livingstone, who moved from being finance director to replace Danon, joined the million-pound pay club, with his total pay rising 36pc to £1.11m.