Max Levchin
About Max Levchin
Max Levchin, age 50, is the Founder, Chairman, and Chief Executive Officer of Affirm Holdings, Inc., serving on the Board since 2012; he previously co-founded PayPal (CTO until its sale to eBay in 2003), helped create Yelp, founded HVF in 2011, and spun out Affirm in 2012 . Levchin holds a bachelor’s degree in computer science from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and was born in Kyiv, Ukraine, moving to the U.S. in 1991 . Pay-versus-performance for fiscal 2025 shows “Compensation Actually Paid” to the PEO of −$1,140,208, largely reflecting fair value changes to his Value Creation Award, while cumulative TSR for Affirm is tracked against the S&P North American Technology Index since listing on January 13, 2021 .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Confinity/PayPal | Co‑founder; CTO | 1998–2003 | Built core payments technology; exited via sale to eBay . |
| Slide | Founder | Up to 2010 | Personal media-sharing service; acquired by Google in 2010 . |
| HVF (MRL Investments LLC) | Founder | 2011–present | Innovation lab leveraging large data sets; incubated Affirm in 2012 . |
| Affirm Holdings, Inc. | Founder; Chairman & CEO | 2012–present | Built BNPL platform; public listing in 2021 . |
| Yelp | Co‑creator | — | Early consumer internet leadership . |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Start Date | Committee/Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Coca‑Cola Company (KO) | Director | Oct 16, 2025 | Appointed to Talent & Compensation Committee; participates in KO Directors’ Plan . |
| The Coca‑Cola Company (KO) | Director Form 3 | Oct 20, 2025 | Filed initial beneficial ownership; relationship marked as Director . |
| Prior public boards | Director | — | Has served on boards of Yelp Inc. and Yahoo! Inc. . |
Fixed Compensation
| Year | Base Salary ($) | Bonus ($) | Stock Awards ($) | Option Awards ($) | Non-Equity Incentive ($) | All Other Compensation ($) | Total ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 35,340 | — | — | — | — | 374,467 | 409,807 |
| 2024 | 37,586 | — | — | — | — | 482,334 | 519,920 |
| 2025 | 38,834 | — | — | — | — | 499,473 | 538,307 |
- FY2025 “All Other Compensation” includes $491,973 of personal security services; the Company considers this a business expense rather than a personal benefit .
Performance Compensation
CEO Value Creation Award (VCA) – Structure and Hurdles
- Granted in fiscal 2021: performance-based stock options for up to 12,500,000 Class A shares; 10 tranches earned upon meeting 90-day VWAP stock price hurdles from $65.66 to $371.91 (equitable adjustments as needed) within 5 years of grant; once earned, each tranche vests over five years from grant at 15%, 15%, 20%, 25%, 25% subject to service .
- As of June 30, 2025, the first four tranches had been earned; no new tranches earned in fiscal 2025 .
| Metric | Target/Hurdle | Status | Vesting Terms | Instrument |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| VCA Tranches | 90‑day VWAP hurdles: $65.66–$371.91 | First four tranches earned by 6/30/2025; none earned FY2025 | Each earned tranche vests 15%, 15%, 20%, 25%, 25% over 5 years from grant | Performance stock options |
Outstanding Awards and Q1’26 Activity
| As of | Exercisable Options (#) | Unexercisable (#) | Unearned Options (#) | Exercise Price ($) | Expiration |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6/30/2025 (FY25 year‑end) | 4,000,000 | — | 8,500,000 | 49.00 | 1/21/2031 |
| 9/30/2025 (Q1’26) | 2,666,668 vested & exercisable | — | — | 49.00 | 5.29 years remaining |
| Q1’26 VCA Activity | Number of Options | Exercise Price ($) | Vested & Exercisable (#) | Aggregate In‑the‑Money Value ($000s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Exercised in Q1’26 | 1,333,332 | 49.00 | 2,666,668 | 64,213 |
- Affirm’s FY Q1’26 fully diluted share count framework includes 11 million VCA shares (treasury method; WASTP $49.00) .
FY2025 Option Exercise and Stock Vesting (NEOs)
| Name | Option Shares Exercised (#) | Value Realized on Exercise ($) | Stock Awards Vested (#) | Value Realized on Vesting ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Max Levchin | — | — | — | — |
Equity Ownership & Alignment
| Holder | Class A Shares | % of Class A | Class B Shares | % of Class B | % of Total Voting Power |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Max Levchin | 3,401,962 | 1.17% | 26,485,472 | 65.04% | 44.41% |
- Ownership breakdown includes (i) 15,397,650 Class B shares held by Mr. Levchin; (ii) 735,294 Class A and 735,294 Class B shares held by the Levchin 2012 Irrevocable Trust (joint settlors: Mr. Levchin and spouse); and (iv) 10,352,528 Class B shares held by 2012 MRL Investments LLC, over which Mr. Levchin has sole voting and investment power .
- No pledging or hedging disclosures specific to Mr. Levchin appear in the beneficial ownership footnotes .
Employment Terms
| Scenario | Cash Severance | Bonus/Annual Incentive | Health Benefits | Equity Acceleration |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Change‑in‑Control period (double trigger) | 150% of CEO’s annual base salary (lump sum) | Pro‑rata target cash incentive | Up to 18 months (CEO) | Immediate acceleration of all time‑based equity awards |
| Outside Change‑in‑Control period | 100% of CEO’s annual base salary (lump sum) | — | Up to 12 months (CEO) | — |
| Death or Disability | Pro‑rata annual cash incentive at target/actual (higher) | — | Up to 12 months | 12 months acceleration of all outstanding equity; performance awards at target |
Board Governance
- Affirm Board service: Chairman and CEO; Director since 2012; Board committees: none .
- Skills/qualifications cited include CEO experience; engineering/technology/innovation; payments/financial services/fintech; bank regulatory; venture capital/private equity; operational experience; M&A .
- At The Coca‑Cola Company, Levchin was elected Director effective Oct 16, 2025 and appointed to the Board’s Talent & Compensation Committee; KO disclosed there are no Item 404(a) related party transactions tied to Mr. Levchin’s appointment .
Director Compensation (KO)
| Component | Amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Annual cash retainer (prorated for 2025) | $90,000 | Paid quarterly; non‑employee director compensation plan. |
| Annual deferred share units (prorated for 2025) | $200,000 | KO Directors’ Plan equity component. |
Performance & Track Record Indicators
| Measure | FY2025 Result | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Compensation Actually Paid (PEO) | −$1,140,208 | Driven largely by fair value changes in VCA under ASC 718 . |
| TSR tracking | Cumulative TSR measured since 1/13/2021 IPO against S&P North American Technology Index peer group | Data assumes $100 invested; dividends reinvested . |
Investment Implications
- Alignment: Levchin’s pay is almost entirely equity‑linked via the multi‑year VCA tied to share price hurdles, with no annual equity grants in FY2025, reinforcing direct linkage between pay and shareholder returns .
- Supply/overhang: As of FY Q1’26, 11 million VCA shares are included in fully diluted share count assumptions; 2.67 million VCA options were vested and exercisable, and 1.33 million were exercised in Q1’26, indicating potential incremental float dynamics depending on sell‑through and net settlement effects .
- Control and governance: Levchin holds 44.41% of total voting power via Class B and trusts/LLC, concentrating decision authority alongside his dual Chairman/CEO role; he has no Board committee assignments at AFRM, and thus investors typically monitor independence safeguards at the Board level .
- Retention economics: The Officer Severance Plan provides 1.5x base salary in a double‑trigger change‑in‑control scenario for the CEO plus pro‑rata bonus and 18 months of benefits, with immediate time‑based equity acceleration; outside a change‑in‑control the CEO receives 1.0x salary and 12 months of benefits, supporting retention while limiting single‑trigger windfalls .
- External network: KO board and Talent & Compensation Committee seat expands cross‑industry perspective; KO disclosed no related party transactions with Levchin on appointment, mitigating interlock concerns .
Note: All facts and figures are sourced from AFRM’s October 24, 2025 Proxy Statement, AFRM’s November 6, 2025 Form 10‑Q and Earnings Slides, and KO’s October 16, 2025 8‑K and press release as cited above.