The highest-paying fintech is rethinking compensation

If you’re looking for a well-paying job in fintech, there’s not much out there better than Stripe. Payments decacorn was one of the highest paying companies for engineers according to Levels.fy’s 2022 compensation report.

But as any fintech employee knows, it’s not just about pay. It is also about restricted stock options (RSU). After Stripe didn’t go public as expected last year and may remain private this year at a greatly reduced value (down $11 billion) from its peak, those RSUs are starting to become a problem.

The problem is that the RSUs Stripe issued to entice employees to work there earlier are due to start vesting from 2024. Employees who have them will lose their shares unless Stripe a) buys them out, b) restructures the awards, or c) launches an IPO soon.

Either way, both Stripe and the employees who hold the RSUs face a big tax bill.

All of which explains why Stripe needs a few people to help it. The fintech is currently hiring five compensation program managers in the US to work on “compensation strategy and design” and “build our key global compensation programs.”

Does this mean Stripe is going to change the way it pays? Probably not when it comes to generous salaries (even these admin roles can earn an annual salary of up to $180k), but maybe when it comes to RSUs. However, it appears that the firm may push the pay of its top engineers this year.

There are also ongoing debates about the company’s work-life balance, which are reportedly fierce. An employee writes on Blind and says that tiring hours are in the company’s DNA. A $730k staff engineer says it’s a great place for younger engineers to start their careers. He says “if you’re a senior, take it and make it an experience you enjoy. If you’re a junior, buckle up, pay your dues, come out the other end better for it.”

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