The dramatic recovery of Rolls-Royce has placed chief executive Tufan Erginbilgic in line for a potential share-based payout exceeding £100 million, one of the largest such incentives ever seen in the UK corporate sector. 

The prospective windfall reflects the surge in the company’s share price since Erginbilgic took over in January 2023, rather than any immediate cash bonus.

Erginbilgic’s recruitment package, agreed when he joined from Global Infrastructure Partners, included 8.3–9.3 million shares split into two tranches, scheduled to vest in 2027 and 2028. 

At the time of grant in early 2023, Rolls-Royce shares were trading below 100p, valuing the award at roughly £8 million.

By late December 2025, with the share price around £11.49–£11.57, the same shares would be worth approximately £106 million if fully vested and sold at current levels.

From “Burning Platform” to Balance Sheet Repair

When Erginbilgic assumed leadership, Rolls-Royce was emerging from the pandemic in a fragile state. 

Net debt stood at £3.25 billion at the end of 2022, civil aviation markets were only gradually recovering, and the group was grappling with operational and supply-chain disruptions.

Early in his tenure, the new chief executive described the company as a “burning platform” and said it had been “grossly mismanaged.”

His response focused on rapid and often unpopular measures.

The group launched aggressive cost-cutting, eliminated around 2,500 jobs, tightened control over procurement and logistics, and sought to instill what management described as a more performance-driven culture.

The strategy aimed to stabilize cash flow first, then restore investor confidence.

Share Price as Scorecard

The market response has been striking. Rolls-Royce shares rose about 222% in 2023, followed by further strong gains in 2024 and roughly 91% in 2025. 

Taken together, the stock has increased by around 12 times since Erginbilgic’s arrival. 

The company reached its mid-term profit targets two years earlier than planned, reinstated dividends, launched share buybacks exceeding £1 billion, and repeatedly upgraded guidance.

This rebound has driven a sharp re-rating of the business.

Rolls-Royce’s market capitalization expanded from under £8 billion when Erginbilgic took charge to more than £95 billion by the end of 2025, transforming perceptions of a group that only a few years earlier had been viewed as financially distressed.

The scale of the potential payout has drawn attention, but it is rooted in long-term equity incentives rather than annual remuneration. 

In 2023, Erginbilgic’s total compensation reached £13.6 million, inflated by the one-off buyout award linked to his recruitment. In 2024, reported pay fell to £4.1 million as those initial effects dropped away. Under the standard policy, future annual compensation could rise to around £12 million, including a base salary of roughly £1.25 million plus incentives.

The headline £100m-plus figure reflects the appreciation of the recruitment shares alone, directly tied to shareholder returns.