SK Hynix Offers Stock Purchase Option as Part of Performance Bonuses

Implementation of 'Shareholder Participation Program'
Boosting Employee Motivation and Sharing Future Value
Option to Receive up to 50% of PS in Company Stock
Maximum PS Expected Amid Record-Breaking Performance

SK Hynix will include a stock purchase option in the performance bonuses to be paid to its employees in January this year. This decision is said to be aimed at boosting employee motivation and encouraging participation in sharing the company's future value.

SK Hynix Headquarters, Icheon, Gyeonggi. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung

According to industry sources on the 14th, SK Hynix informed its employees on the internal notice board on the 9th that it will implement a 'Shareholder Participation Program.' The application period is until the 16th.

Previously, at the end of 2022, the company also implemented this program for the performance bonuses to be paid in 2023. The Shareholder Participation Program allows employees to choose to hold part of their Performance Share (PS) payout (up to 50%) in company stock as a kind of option, with an additional 15% cash premium paid if the stock is held for one year.

PS is an incentive paid once a year based on annual performance, up to 50% of the annual salary (1000% of the base pay). Since 2021, SK Hynix has been paying PS based on 10% of the previous year's operating profit, linked to individual performance.

According to SK Hynix, employees participating in the Shareholder Participation Program can choose to receive between a minimum of 10% and a maximum of 50% of their PS in stock, in 10% increments.

Meanwhile, SK Hynix plans to pay the PS within this month. On the 11th of last month, SK Hynix CEO Kwak No-jeong stated at an employee communication event, "We will strive to pay the PS by January next year, before the Lunar New Year."

The scale of the PS payment is expected to be at its maximum, as the company is posting record-breaking performance led by high-bandwidth memory (HBM). Securities firms estimate that SK Hynix’s operating profit last year exceeded 23 trillion won, surpassing the 2018 operating profit of 20.8438 trillion won during the semiconductor boom.