HCL Tech CEO C Vijayakumar earns ₹95 crore in FY25; more than TCS, Infosys chiefs; check details

C Vijayakumar, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of HCL Technologies, earned approximately ₹94.6 crore ($10.85 million) in the financial year 2024-25 (FY25), becoming one of the highest-paid IT sector executives in India and surpassing the earnings of CEOs at larger rival firms, including TCS and Infosys. 

HCL Tech’s board has also approved an over 71% increase in his current salary to about ₹154 crore ($18.6 million) for FY26, as per the IT major’s annual report. Vijayakumar's FY25 compensation places him ahead of his peers at India's top two IT firms.

In FY25, TCS CEO K Krithivasan earned ₹26.52 crore, while Infosys CEO Salil Parekh’s remuneration was ₹80.62 crore. Vijayakumar's compensation was also more than that of other chiefs of Indian IT companies, including Wipro CEO Srinivas Pallia (about ₹53.64 crore) and Tech Mahindra CEO Mohit Joshi (₹53.9 crore).

Vijayakumar's total remuneration in FY25 included a base salary of $1.96 million and a performance-linked bonus of $1.73 million, according to HCL Tech’s annual report. 

The biggest part of Vijayakumar's earnings was long-term incentives, with exercised Restricted Stock Units (RSUs) valued at $6.96 million. Further, $0.20 million was provided to him in benefits and perquisites. 

Vijayakumar took over as HCL Tech’s CEO in 2016 and is currently based in the US. He draws his remuneration from HCL America Inc., HCLTech’s wholly-owned US subsidiary.

"Under C. Vijayakumar's leadership, HCL Tech's market capitalisation 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 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.

HCL Tech’s board has approved a revised remuneration package for Vijayakumar, effective from April 1, 2025, with his proposed annual salary set at $18.6 million (up 71% YoY). The proposed structure significantly increases both fixed and performance-linked components.

"The revised compensation acknowledges C Vijayakumar's successful and long-tenured leadership as CEO, recognising his significant contributions to the company's growth and sustained performance over the years," the report said.

HCL Technologies Q1 results and share price

HCL Tech reported a consolidated net profit of ₹3,843 crore for the first quarter of the current fiscal year (Q1 FY26), down 9.7% from ₹4,257 crore posted in the year-ago period. The company’s revenue jumped 8% YoY to ₹30,349 crore during the June quarter, as against ₹28,057 crore in the same period a year ago.

The fall in net profit was due to higher expenses and the one-time impact of a client bankruptcy. However, the company’s lower end of revenue growth outlook for the full fiscal 2025-26 was raised to 3-5% from 2-5% previously, driven by booking expectations in the coming quarters.

At 11:13 AM on Monday, August 4, shares of HCL Tech were trading 0.14% up at ₹1,454.10 apiece on the NSE. The stock opened at ₹1,452.10 per share. The company’s market capitalisation stood at ₹3,94,594.04 crore.