On December 27, Minsheng Bank disclosed the "remaining portion" of its senior executives' compensation, thereby presenting the complete 2024 executive pay package to the public.
According to the announcement, the "remaining portion" of Chairman Gao Yingxin's 2024 compensation was 1.6213 million yuan. Combined with the pre-tax salary of 3.3463 million yuan disclosed in the annual report, his total compensation reached 4.9676 million yuan.
Comparing this to Gao Yingxin's 2023 compensation, the annual report showed his base salary was 3.7352 million yuan. Added to the "remaining portion" of 2.1421 million yuan disclosed in November 2024, his full-year total compensation amounted to 5.8773 million yuan.
This indicates that Gao Yingxin's 2024 compensation decreased by 909,700 yuan compared to the previous year, with his base salary dropping by 388,900 yuan and the "remaining portion" falling by 520,800 yuan.
Did the chairman's pay reduction correlate with Minsheng Bank's declining performance?
Financial reports reveal that Minsheng Bank's 2024 operating income decreased by 3.21% year-over-year, while net profit attributable to shareholders fell by 9.85%. Other core business metrics also declined, with net interest income down 3.70%, net fee and commission income down 5.20%, and the provision coverage ratio dropping by 7.75 percentage points.
Despite Gao Yingxin's 2024 compensation falling below 5 million yuan, he remains the highest-paid chairman among joint-stock banks.
Minsheng Bank is not a top performer in terms of either scale or performance among joint-stock banks, yet its chairman receives the industry's highest salary, which has inevitably sparked controversy.
In fairness, labeling Gao Yingxin as the "pay king" among joint-stock bank chairs is somewhat misleading. Some chairs of joint-stock banks do not receive their salaries directly from the bank but are paid by their parent conglomerates—examples include Ping An Bank, China Merchants Bank, CITIC Bank, and China Everbright Bank. While some chairs indeed earn more than Gao Yingxin, since their compensation is not drawn from the bank, the title of "pay king" among joint-stock banks still falls to Minsheng Bank.
Gao Yingxin has been at the helm of Minsheng Bank for over five years since May 2020. During this period, the bank has faced numerous challenges, with its performance declining and its former luster gradually fading. Even with Gao Yingxin—a veteran who previously served as Vice President of Bank of China—steering the ship, it has been difficult to reverse the downturn.
Born in July 1962, Gao Yingxin is now over 63 years old. Notably, his predecessor, Hong Qi, also stepped down as chairman at the age of 63.
Consequently, questions remain about how much longer Gao Yingxin will lead Minsheng Bank and whether the bank will undergo a leadership change in 2026.
