SK Hynix to pay 60% of bonuses in stock instead of cash

SK Hynix, the South Korean memory chip powerhouse riding the AI boom to record profits, just told its workforce that most of their bonuses will come in company stock rather than cold, hard cash. Under a preliminary agreement reached on August 20, 60% of the company’s 2026 profit-sharing bonuses will be paid in SK Hynix shares, with the remaining 40% in cash. The deal still needs union approval, but the signal is clear: the era of all-cash bonus payouts at SK Hynix is over. A half-million-dollar average bonus, mostly in shares The numbers here are genuinely staggering. SK Hynix’s profit-sharing program allocates 10% of annual operating profit to employee bonuses. For 2026, that works out to an average payout of roughly 779 million won per worker, or approximately $547,000. The stock portion will be distributed on a staggered schedule. Employees will receive 40% of the total bonus value in shares during 2027, with the remaining 20% split across 2028 and 2029. The 40% cash component is also slated for 2027. One notable detail: there will be no lock-up period or restrictions on selling the shares once received. Why the shift from cash to stock SK Hynix has been one of the biggest benef...