CEO pay at Bitcoin mines has soared, growing at a faster rate than the energy and tech industries. In 2024, median CEO compensation jumped to $14.4 million. This amount was more than double last year’s average of $6.6 million. This increase has generated controversy, especially when considered next to employee outcomes and investor approval.

It’s the roughly $100 million boost in compensation for CEOs that isn’t consistently justified by corporate results. Riot Platforms' executives, for instance, received $230 million in compensation, an amount equivalent to 73% of the company's market-cap gains in 2024. Though Riot Platforms’ numbers are extreme, other companies experienced large shares of market-cap growth distributed to executive pay.

Marathon Digital’s executive compensation made up 18% of its market-cap increase. For perspective, that means executive compensation accounted for nearly 2% of their added market-cap—combined—for TeraWulf and Core Scientific. These figures serve to illuminate the immense variance in compensation strategies employed by the Bitcoin mining industry.

Base salaries for Bitcoin mining executives were an average of $474,000 in 2023, a modest amount compared to their total figures. Stock-based compensation made up 89% of executive pay packages in 2024, a sign that most companies are heavily leaning on equity-based incentives. This pay structure links executive bonuses to the performance of the company’s stock, incentivizing them to act in the best interest of shareholders.

In an effort to make executive pay more performance-oriented, six of the eight largest Bitcoin miners are implementing measures. Other significant companies such as Riot Platforms, Core Scientific, Hut 8, Cipher Mining, TeraWulf and Marathon Digital adopted PSUs at a greater rate. Like most equity awards, PSUs typically vest over multiple years. They are tied to share price or total shareholder return indices, which vastly incentivizes long-term value creation.

And after fully making the transition as of 2025, Marathon Digital has made a full commitment to performance-based compensation. Cipher Mining has adopted a 50/50 split between restricted stock units and PSUs, balancing guaranteed equity with performance-based incentives.

Even though the industry has successfully adopted practices that tie executive compensation to performance, shareowner support for these packages is tepid at best. Bitcoin miners, on the other hand, averaged a meager 64% support for executive pay shareholder proposals in 2024. Most shareholders don’t believe their tab for executive pay is reasonable. This faith comes from a misplaced faith borne out of insufficient rationale, rooted in the company’s alleged performance.

Shareholder rejection of excessive compensation for executives may no longer be ignored by boards and thus will bring more focused attention and likely further changes in compensation practices. Companies may need to better communicate their compensation strategies and demonstrate a clear link between executive pay and long-term value creation to win over skeptical investors.