MediaTek Inc (聯發科) yesterday announced it would give incentive bonuses totaling NT$1.7 billion (US$59.7 million) to its employees and those at the firm’s major subsidiaries, after the smartphone chip supplier’s revenue hit US$10 billion last year.
This is the biggest incentive bonus the Hsinchu-based handset chip designer has ever distributed in its 23-year history.
About 17,000 full-time employees of MediaTek and five of its subsidiaries, including Richtek Technology Corp (立錡科技) and Airoha Technology Corp (絡達科技), would receive a “red envelope” of NT$100,000 each, the company said.
Photo courtesy of MediaTek Inc
“Surpassing US$10 billion is just the beginning. We will continue to [grow] on this basis,” MediaTek said in a statement.
MediaTek, which has about 10,000 employees in Taiwan, said it has also allocated 20 percent of its annual distributable earnings for local employees’ year-end bonuses.
MediaTek posted NT$322.15 billion in consolidated revenue last year, up 30.84 percent from NT$246.22 billion in 2019, a record for the company, as its 5G smartphone chips were adopted by a growing number of vendors.
LG Electronics Co and Chinese smartphone vendors, including Realme Mobile Telecommunications (Shenzhen) Co (銳爾覓移動通信), Xiaomi Corp (小米), Vivo Communication Technology Co (維沃) and Oppo Mobile Telecommunications Corp (歐珀), use MediaTek’s 5G Dimensity chips in their latest handsets.
MediaTek last quarter overtook Qualcomm Inc as the world’s biggest smartphone chipset supplier for the first time, as its affordable chips gained traction in emerging markets, a tally by market researcher Counterpoint showed.
Tesla Inc temporarily halted some production at its auto assembly plant in California because of problems with its supply chain, but work has begun to resume, CEO Elon Musk told employees in an e-mail on Thursday. “We are experiencing some parts supply issues, so took the opportunity to bring Fremont production down for a few days to do equipment upgrades and maintenance,” Musk said in an all-staff message seen by Bloomberg. The factory was “back up and running as of yesterday,” and would rapidly ramp up to full production of Model 3 and Model Y cars “over the next several days,”
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) was on Thursday set to sell local currency bonds, as it prepared for a spending blitz amid a global chip shortage. The world’s largest contract chipmaker planned to price about NT$16 billion (US$565.25 million) of notes in three parts in an auction, though the actual issuance size might change. The manufacturer would have to contend with a recent rise in rates globally that has sent many corporate bond yields up from record lows in the past few weeks. The debt offering comes at a promising time for the semiconductor industry as the world scrambles its way
‘MAINTAINING MOMENTUM’: The Swedish automaker might pursue plans for an initial public offering, which it had put on hold in 2018, the company said China’s Geely Automobile Holdings Ltd (吉利汽車) and its Swedish affiliate Volvo Cars are putting off earlier plans to merge, wagering that they would be more agile as standalone entities. The manufacturers would preserve their separate corporate structures, while cooperating more closely on electrification, autonomous-driving technology and software, a joint statement said. While they would no longer pursue a combination as announced last year, new listings could be on the table. “This is about maintaining top-line momentum,” Volvo chief executive officer Hakan Samuelsson said in an interview. “A merger isn’t always positive. You risk losing momentum because there’s too much internal focus.” Geely and
United Microelectronics Corp (UMC, 聯電), the world’s No. 3 contract chipmaker, yesterday said that its board of directors has approved a plan to pay a cash dividend of NT$1.6 per share this year, up from NT$0.75 last year and the highest in 21 years. Based on the plan, UMC would pay NT$19.88 billion (US$702.32 million) in cash dividends to shareholders this year. The payout ratio was about 66 percent, as the company earned NT$2.42 per share last year. The planned dividend represents a yield of 2.93 percent, based on the stock’s closing price of NT$54.7 yesterday. The payout plan is subject to shareholders’ approval