His total pay package tops R148 million for 2025.
Kenny Fihla, who joined Absa Group as CEO in mid-June 2025, received a R20.7 million cash buyout award and a share-based buyout award valued at R77.7 million during 2025.
The bank says these awards were “in respect of awards forfeited with his previous employer” (Standard Bank Group).
Fihla joined Absa from Standard Bank, where he was deputy CEO of the group and CEO of its South African operations. Previously, he headed up the bank’s corporate and investment bank unit, having been with Absa’s rival for nearly 20 years.
In total, Fihla was awarded remuneration for the six-and-a-half months of R49.6 million.
This comprised total fixed remuneration of R6.3 million, short-term incentives of R23.3 million, and a long-term incentive award with a value of R20 million.
The short-term incentives were roughly evenly split between a cash award (R12.15 million) and a deferred share award (R11.15 million). The former was paid in March, while the latter will be granted in April.
In total, Fihla’s awarded remuneration from 17 June, including the buyout awards, was R148 million.
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At the end of 2024, Fihla’s various incentive awards across Standard Bank’s deferred bonus schemes and performance reward plan had a total face value of R99.4 million, with notional dividends valued at R11.9 million.
In that year, he received total remuneration of R67.3 million at Standard Bank, which included fixed remuneration of R9.3 million.
Not the first to get these kinds of awards …
It is not uncommon for banks and other large corporates to make these awards in lieu of incentives that executives have forgone at their previous employer.
Jason Quinn, who joined Nedbank as CEO on 31 May 2024, received an “on-appointment award” of R62.7 million as part of his long-term incentives, together with a deferred short-term incentive of R9.2 million “in respect of the value of awards that he forfeited on resignation from his previous employer”.
This, ironically, was Absa, where Quinn had been CFO.
In 2017, MTN granted “cash-settled share-based payment incentives” to three executives who joined the group: Rob Shuter as CEO, Ralph Mupita as CFO, and Jens Schulte-Bockum as COO.
These were made in “in lieu of unvested stocks or equity relinquished upon resignation from previous employment”.
Shuter joined from Vodafone and was awarded 327 214 MTN shares, Mupita joined from Old Mutual and got 446 027 MTN shares.
ALSO READ: Fihla snatches top Standard Bank employees to help Absa rise to its former glory
Former Absa CEO Arrie Rautenbach, who left the group with effect from 15 October 2024, was paid R8.4 million for the 2024 year, with no short-term or long-term incentives granted to him in that year.
Given that he ceased to be an executive director in October 2024, Absa no longer needs to disclose the payment made to him for his six-month contractual notice period, which he served as garden leave.
At the end of 2024, he had unvested awards across various incentive plans with a face value of R87.1 million.
Other current Absa execs
Charles Russon, who was interim CEO from mid-October 2024 until mid-June 2025, was appointed group executive of its Africa Regions unit from September 2025.
In 2025, Russon was awarded remuneration of R39 million, which included short-term incentives of R17 million and a long-term incentive award of R16 million.
The group’s financial director Deon Raju received total remuneration of R32.6 million for 2025, with incentive awards (both short- and long-term) totalling R25.4 million.
In total, the group’s two executive directors received remuneration of R180 million for the year, while the seven prescribed officers were awarded remuneration of R175 million.
The prescribed officers are Russon, Christine Wu, Faisal Mkhize, Geoffrey Lee, Saviour Chibiya, Yasmin Masithela and Mike Harvey. Chibiya ceased to be a prescribed officer on 31 August.
This article was republished from Moneyweb. Read the original here.
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