Elon Musk to pay over $200 million as severance to Twitter's fired top executives

File image of Elon Musk

Billionaire Elon Musk, who now owns Twitter, will be obligated to give more than $204 million in severance to the three top executives who were fired after his $44-billion acquisition of the microblogging website, according to a report by Dow Jones Newswire.

Chief executive officer Parag Agrawal, chief financial officer Ned Segal and legal policy head Vijaya Gadde, who were terminated after Musk's take over, are covered by a "golden parachute" clause in Twitter's merger with Musk's X Holdings.

According to Twitter's filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, Musk fired the three upon taking control of the social network and will have to give them more than $204 million.

Agrawal, Segal and Gadde own roughly 1.2 million shares in Twitter. The trio's $65-million stake—$34.8 million of which is owned by Gadde —would be purchased by Musk like any other shareholder's stock.

Under the "Golden Parachute Compensation" clause, the trio would automatically vest stock worth $119.6 million as severance if terminated, with the largest payout there going to Agrawal at $56 million.

The executives are also entitled to a year's salary and health benefits. In 2021, Agrawal had a base pay of $623,000, while Segal and Gadde's base pay was $600,000 each.

In total, Gadde is set to walk away from Twitter with the biggest haul—nearly $74 million. Agrawal and Segal are not far behind at roughly $65 million and $66 million, the report said.