Switch Founder Rob Roy Snares $95 Million for 2017 Tied to IPO

Anders Melin (Bloomberg) -- Switch Inc. gave its founder and Chief Executive Officer Rob Roy a $94.6 million pay package in 2017, with most of it in a stock award tied to the firm’s initial public offering.

Roy, 49, received a special award of 7.5 million shares -- or 3 percent of the firm’s stock -- linked to its IPO in October. Of those, 3 million vested immediately while the remainder, worth about $81.9 million at the end of 2017, will be handed to him gradually over four years, according to a regulatory filing Friday. Roy also received stock options valued at $2.91 million, $1 million in salary and a $1.26 million bonus.

The Las Vegas-based operator of data centers raised $531 million in its public listing, making it the one of the biggest technology IPOs in the U.S. last year. The stock fell to $14.04 on Friday in New York, and is down 17 percent since it began trading.

Roy founded the business in 2000.

See also: Why Switch's 2018 Guidance Disappointed Wall Street