San Francisco: Former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, who is presently the sixth richest person globally, is set to collect a staggering $1 billion in annual dividend payments from the tech giant in 2024.
This comes after Microsoft's decision to increase its quarterly dividend to 75 cents per share, amounting to $3 per share annually, reports CNN.
Ballmer owns about 4 per cent of the company, equivalent to 333.2 million shares.
His significant stake has increased in value to roughly $130 billion, representing a $44 billion increase in wealth this year alone, due to a spectacular 56 per cent increase in Microsoft's stock price.
In October, Ballmer was ranked as the world's fifth-richest person on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
Ballmer's fortune has increased by an estimated $29 billion this year to about $115 billion, trailing his boss Bill Gates -- who was in fourth position with $121 billion, reports Insider.
Ballmer joined Microsoft in 1980 as Microsoft co-founder's assistant, however, he was more of a business manager than a personal assistant. He became Microsoft's CEO in 2000 and stepped down in 2014.
The tech giant paid $2.79 per share in dividends this year, resulting in an annual payment of about $930 million to Ballmer, depending on his ownership.
