HCLTech CEO C Vijayakumar has emerged as the highest-paid CEO in the Indian IT sector, with a total compensation of ₹94.6 crore ($10.85 million) for the financial year 2024-25. This puts him ahead of his peers at TCS, Infosys, Wipro, and Tech Mahindra.
Components of Vijayakumar's Compensation
Vijayakumar's ₹94.6 crore compensation for FY25 includes a base pay of ₹15.8 crore, a performance-linked bonus of ₹13.9 crore, long-term Restricted Stock Units (RSUs) worth ₹56.9 crore, and a bonus of ₹1.7 crore. The largest portion of his earnings came from long-term incentives, with exercised Restricted Stock Units (RSUs) valued at $6.96 million. An additional $0.20 million was provided in benefits and perquisites.
Comparison with Peers
In comparison, TCS CEO K Krithivasan's remuneration was ₹26.52 crore for FY24. Infosys CEO Salil Parekh earned ₹80.62 crore. Wipro CEO Srinivas Pallia earned ₹53.64 crore, and Tech Mahindra CEO Mohit Joshi earned ₹53.9 crore.
Salary Hike and Employee Remuneration
Vijayakumar received a 7.9% salary increase compared to the previous year. However, the average salary hike for employees excluding managerial personnel in the last financial year was 3.1%. Vijayakumar's salary was 662.5 times the median remuneration of employees in the 2024–25 financial year.
Revised Remuneration for FY26
The HCLTech board has approved a revised remuneration package for Vijayakumar, effective April 1, 2025. His proposed annual salary is set at $18.6 million (around ₹154 crore), marking a 71% increase from his FY25 earnings. The proposed structure significantly increases both fixed and performance-linked components.
The company stated that the revised compensation acknowledges C. Vijayakumar's successful and long-tenured leadership as CEO, recognizing his significant contributions to the company's growth and sustained performance over the years.
HCLTech's Performance Under Vijayakumar
Under Vijayakumar's leadership, HCLTech's market capitalization has increased from ₹1,15,000 crore on March 31, 2016, to ₹4,32,000 crore on March 31, 2025, reflecting a growth of 3.8 times since FY16. Over the same period, the market capitalization of the other four leading Indian listed IT services firms among the top five has grown by approximately 2.5 times. From FY16 to FY25, the number of $100 million clients increased from 8 to 22, $50 million clients from 19 to 52, and $20 million clients from 75 to 138.
HCLTech delivered strong performance from FY16 to FY25, with a revenue CAGR of 9.3%—the highest among peers; an EBIT CAGR of 8.1%, ranking second highest; and a net income CAGR of 6.9%, also the second highest in the peer group.
HCLTech Financials
For the second quarter of 2024-25, HCLTech posted a net profit of ₹4,235 crore, marking a 10.5% year-on-year increase. Revenue for the quarter was ₹28,862 crore, up 8.2% year-on-year. The company is estimating revenue growth between 3.5% and 5%.
In the quarter ended March 2025, HCL Technologies posted an 8.1 per cent increase in consolidated net profit at Rs 4,307 crore. For the year ended March 31, 2025, HCL Technologies posted an increase of about 11 per cent in net profit at Rs 17,390 crore. Revenue from operations rose 6.5 per cent to Rs 1,17,055 crore year-on-year.
Vijayakumar's Re-appointment
The Board has approved Vijayakumar's re-appointment as the CEO & MD of HCLTech from September 1 this year to March 31, 2030.
