HCLTech's C Vijayakumar took home Rs 94.6 crore in FY25, is highest-paid Indian IT CEO for a second year

HCLTech CEO and MD C Vijayakumar

HCLTech CEO C Vijayakumar remains the highest-paid chief executive in the Indian IT industry for a second year in a row, with a total compensation of $10.85 million (approximately Rs 94.6 crore) in FY25. The 57-year-old CEO outpaced peers at top Indian IT rival such as Infosys, Wipro, TCS and Tech Mahindra.

Vijayakumar’s pay package, which includes base salary, performance-linked incentives, stock awards, and other benefits, marks a steady rise from the previous fiscal year. In FY24, he earned $10.06 million (around Rs 84.17 crore), a staggering 190 percent jump from the previous year

The sharp increase in FY24 had already drawn attention, as it far outpaced the average 7 percent salary hike given to HCLTech employees that year.

In FY25, HCLTech board approved a 71 percent hike in Vijayakumar’s compensation for the coming year, setting his FY26 package at $18.6 million, or about Rs 154 crore, raising questions among industry observers about the widening pay gap at the top.

The board has credited the company's market performance as one of the key reasons behind the continued increase in his pay package.

"Under C Vijayakumar's leadership, HCLTech's market capitalisation has increased from Rs 1,15,000 crore on March 31, 2016, to Rs 4,32,000 crore on March 31, 2025, reflecting a growth of 3.8 times since FY16. Over the same period, the market capitalisation of the other four leading Indian listed IT services firms among the top five has grown by approximately 2.5 times," the company said in its annual report.

How his peers fare?

Infosys CEO Salil Parekh earned Rs 80.62 crore in FY25 and Wipro’s Srinivas Pallia Rs 53.64 crore. Tech Mahindra’s Mohit Joshi, who completed his first full year as CEO, was paid Rs 52.1 crore, and TCS’ K Krithivasan earned Rs 26.5 crore in FY25. Vijayakumar’s compensation not only leads the industry but also far exceeds that of his peers.

His FY25 remuneration comprised a base salary of $1.96 million, a variable bonus of $1.73 million and long-term incentives valued at $6.96 million, in addition to benefits and perquisites worth $0.2 million, HCLTech’s filings said.

This is the second year in a row that HCLTech’s CEO has led the compensation charts.

In FY23, Wipro’s Thierry Delaporte topped the list with a package of Rs 82 crore followed by Parekh and Vijayakumar.

The shift since highlights HCLTech’s growing willingness to reward its top leadership, especially as the company looks to compete more aggressively in digital, cloud and AI deals.