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CEO's $821M Payday: World's 2nd Highest
26 Jun
Summary
- Shankh Mitra earned $821 million in 2025, ranking him second globally.
- Nearly 99% of Mitra's pay came from stock awards tied to future performance.
- Mitra's career started in Kolkata before moving to top US business schools.
In 2025, Shankh Mitra, the Indian-origin CEO of Welltower, achieved the second-highest executive compensation globally, earning $821 million. This substantial package significantly marks a rebound in executive pay after recent slowdowns. Mitra's journey began in Kolkata, where he completed his engineering degree before pursuing an MBA at Columbia Business School in the United States.
His professional path included roles at PwC and Fidelity Investments, followed by investment management positions at Citadel and Millennium Management. Mitra joined Welltower in 2016 and rose to CEO in 2020, lauded for his "investing and operational acumen."
Nearly 99% of Mitra's 2025 compensation consisted of stock awards, with a significant portion subject to Welltower's market value increase and outperformance of stock market indices over five years.
This notable compensation places Mitra behind only Elon Musk and highlights a trend where nearly a dozen executives received pay packages exceeding $200 million in 2025.
