“Cash is king”—even sometimes in compensation. In a survey last December conducted by executive search firm Heidrick & Struggles, CFOs at PE-backed companies in the US reported average total cash compensation of $604,000, up 5% from 2024. While the average cash bonus declined 2%, the average base salary rose 7%.

The cash compensation boost, according to H&S, “reflects longer expected hold periods and time to exit, which heightens candidates’ focus on negotiating base cash compensation up front. As CFOs carefully consider both immediate and long-term value in these extended investment horizons, they’ve realized that a higher base mitigates the risk of delayed equity realization and shapes the overall package.”

The H&S survey collected compensation data from 353 senior financial officers, most of whom were CFOs, within the US and Europe. A plurality (40%) of the respondents said their financial investors had exit timelines three or four years from the time of the survey, 29% said one to two years, and 16% gave them five or more years.

President and founding partner of Cowen Partners Executive Search Shawn Cole told CFO Brew that the experienced PE-backed CFOs he’s seen in recent years are coming from “extended hold times”—when the PE firm took longer than what’s been traditional to exit an investment.

Keep reading.—DL

We haaaaaate to add to the list of things keeping you up at night, but have you ever considered adding healthcare costs to the nightmare rotation?

Plenty of other CFOs have, according to a recent survey from Mercer, a global professional services firm.

Approximately three-quarters of the finance executives who responded said healthcare costs ranked among their companies’ top five operating expense concerns, per the survey, which was fielded during February 2026 and polled 161 organizations.

A third of the CFOs said it was an even higher concern—in their top three. Back in the relative calm of 2024, only 19% ranked health benefit costs as a top three concern, the survey noted.

Keep reading.—NP

After a shaky start, stocks have ripped higher in 2026, with the S&P 500 closing out last week at a record high for the ninth time this year. But even as the market climbs to all-time highs, Wall Street’s message is the same it’s been all year: Buy the dip.

Here’s what the major banks are saying about this moment in markets:

• JPMorgan says this cycle is different, arguing that today’s geopolitical shock won’t play out like past drawdowns. Unlike 2022, inflation is cooling and central banks are less likely to tighten into an energy-driven slowdown, while earnings momentum for the S&P 500 is strengthening. That combination means recent weakness is more about sentiment than fundamentals, making dips a buying opportunity rather than a warning sign.
• Morgan Stanley also remains bullish, saying pullbacks should be shallow. For one, companies are doing better than Wall Street expected, with positive surprises running at about 2x the norm and forward estimates still moving higher. Meanwhile, AI adoption is accelerating: 25% of S&P 500 firms cited AI-derived benefits in Q1, up from 13% last year. They’ve helped cut costs and boost margins, especially for small caps.

Keep reading on Brew Markets.—SY

At a session at the 2026 AICPA CFO Conference in Miami, CFOs who’ve
been through multiple CEO changes shared their best advice. Here’s what you need to know for handling the changeover when others look toward you for some form of direction.