Board remuneration more commonly paid in shares

In Finland, the board remuneration is generally paid as a fixed fee paid either monthly or annually. Also, a meeting fee is used as a form of board remuneration in Finland. In addition, most companies pay a meeting and/or annual fee for board members participating in the board’s committee work.

The level of board remuneration is clearly linked to the company size. Larger companies pay higher fees than the smaller ones. Almost all the chairs of the boards and committees receive higher remuneration than a board member. Most of the Nasdaq Helsinki’s Large Cap and Mid Cap companies and some of the Small Cap companies also have a vice chair, who is paid an increased board fee. The median remuneration paid to a board member for the board work alone is 30 000 euros per year in Finland (excluding committee fees) and 60 000 euros per year to the chair.

Since the COVID-19 pandemic year, the decisions of annual general meetings on board remuneration have returned to more normal levels. At last spring’s annual general meetings, about 50% of the companies that pay a fixed remuneration raised their board fees, the average raise being about 9%.

It is good to justify the board remuneration proposal to the annual general meeting and to compare the level and the structure of the board remuneration to the relevant peer group of companies.

Evli Alexander Incentive Oy’s board remuneration database provides full data on the board and committee remuneration covering all the Finnish listed companies as well as Swedish and Danish Large Cap and Mid Cap companies. From this database, we provide companies with Tailored Board Remuneration Analysis where we analyze the board remuneration of the target company in relation to the selected peer group.

Board remuneration payment in shares has become more common. Two thirds of the Finnish Large Cap companies and approximately a half of all the companies listed on the main list pay part of their board remuneration in the company’s shares.

Board remuneration payment in shares, % of companies

Source: Evli Alexander Incentives Oy, Board Remuneration Report 2021

The payment of remuneration in shares involves a few things to consider, such as the practical arrangements for share purchases, book-entry accounts’ openings, especially for non-Finnish members as well as the MAR reports. Evli Alexander Incentives Oy takes care of these practical matters for a number of companies.

Additional information:

Leena Tyynilä, Director, Evli Alexander Incentives Oy, p.+358 50 560 5509, leena.tyynila@eai.fi