Golden Parachutes

Golden Parachutes

Though they were at the helm of companies that were bruised or broken by the credit crunch, these 12 CEOs were still offered big severance packages when they were shown the door.

Take a look at these subprime CEOs and their golden parachutes, including the one who apparently declined his multi-million dollar exit package. The packages include cash, benefits, stock options and other forms of compensation and are based on company proxy statements.

Stanley O'Neal

Total: $161 million
Company: Merrill Lynch

Merrill Lynch ousted O’Neal from his position on Oct. 28, 2007 shortly after the company reported $8 billion in write-downs. John Thain replaced him as CEO.

Charles Prince

Total: $105 million
Company: Citigroup

Prince resigned from his position on Nov. 4, 2007 after the company announced $11 billion in write-downs.

Angelo Mozilo

Total: $56 million
Company: Countrywide

Mozilo stepped down from the CEO spot on July 1, 2008 after leading Countrywide for 39 years. Bank of America bought the troubled mortgage lender in Jan. 2008.

Kerry Killinger

Total: $44 million
Company: Washington Mutual

Killinger was removed as CEO on Sept. 8, 2008. He was replaced by Alan Fisherman, who led the company for three weeks until the bank was seized by the FDIC and sold to JPMorgan Chase.

Ken Thompson

Total: $42 million
Company: Wachovia

Thompson was removed from his position on June 1, 2008 following questions about a major acquisition as well as heavy losses. Once the fourth largest bank in the US, Wachovia was later bought by Citigroup in Sept. 2008.

Richard Fuld

Total: $24 million
Company: Lehman Brothers

Fuld’s four-decade career with Lehman ended Sept. 17, 2008. The investment bank filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, the largest such case in US history.

Alan Fishman

Total: $19 million
Company: Washington Mutual

Fishman was paid $19 million for three weeks of work. He joined WaMu on Sept. 8 and left on Sept. 25, 2008. The bank was seized by the FDIC -- the largest bank failure in US history -- and parts of it were bought by JPMorgan Chase.

Richard Syron

Total: $16 million
Company: Freddie Mac

Freddie Mac, led by Syron until Sept. 8, 2008, was taken over by the federal government along with Fannie Mae.

James Cayne

Total: $13 million
Company: Bear Stearns

Several months after two hedge funds collapsed, Cayne stepped down from the CEO position on Jan. 8. Bear Stearns was bought by JPMorgan Chase in a Fed-engineered deal in March.

John Thain

Total: $9 million
Company: Merrill Lynch

Thain served as CEO of Merrill Lynch for less than a year, before Bank of America bought the investment bank for $50 billion on Sept. 14, 2008.

Daniel Mudd

Total: $8 million
Company: Fannie Mae

Fannie Mae, led by Mudd until Sept. 8, 2008, was taken over by the federal government along with Freddie Mac.

Robert Willumstad

Total: $22 million (was declined)
Company: AIG

Willumstad reportedly rejected a $22 million severance package from troubled insurance giant AIG. He was replaced as CEO on Sept. 17, 2008 after the company received an $85-billion loan from the federal government in exchange for a 79.9 percent stake in the company.

http://www.cnbc.com/id/26959512