Ryanair Holdings PLC (LSE:RYA) boss Michael O’Leary is nearing an eye watering €100 million (£86 million) bonus.
The bonus itself would mark the largest in European corporate history and comes after Ryanair has benefitted from a rebound in travel demand following the pandemic.
Should shares in the budget carrier hit and remain above €21 for 28 days, O’Leary would receive the reward through share options.
These would allow him the right to buy 10 million Ryanair shares at €11.12 each, effectively leaving O’Leary with an instant paper profit of €98.8 million.
Ryanair closed Friday at €18.84 per share, having beaten a previous record high set in late 2017 during last week’s final day of trading on the Euronext Dublin.
He could also be granted the bonus if Ryanair records a €2.2 billion post-tax profit for the full year, the Financial Times first reported, as agreed in 2019.
Post-tax profit between €1.85 billion and €2.05 billion is being targeted by Ryanair for its financial year to March meanwhile, marking as much as a 43% increase on 2022’s €1.43 billion.