Rambus (RMBS) appoints veteran semiconductor finance leader Sumeet Gagneja as CFO
Rhea-AI Filing Summary
Rambus Inc. has appointed Sumeet Gagneja as senior vice president and chief financial officer, effective April 29, 2026, reporting to CEO Luc Seraphin. Interim CFO John Allen will return full-time to his role as vice president, accounting and chief accounting officer.
Gagneja brings more than two decades of finance leadership across major semiconductor and data center companies, including AMD, Western Digital, Xilinx, Innovium, Maxim Integrated, Avago and Intel. He will lead global finance, including financial strategy, capital allocation and investor engagement.
His compensation package includes a base salary of $475,000, a target bonus equal to 75% of base salary (prorated for 2026), a $300,000 new hire bonus, an RSU grant valued at $1,625,000, a performance share award grant valued at $1,625,000, and an additional new hire RSU grant valued at $3,000,000.
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Insights
Rambus installs a permanent CFO with a sizable, equity-heavy pay package.
Rambus is moving from an interim to a permanent CFO by appointing Sumeet Gagneja, a veteran finance executive with experience at AMD, Western Digital and other major semiconductor firms. He will oversee financial strategy, capital allocation and investor relations.
The compensation mix combines cash and equity, with a $475,000 base salary, 75% target bonus and multiple RSU and performance share awards totaling several million dollars. This structure ties a significant portion of pay to company performance and share value over time.
Standard indemnification and change of control severance agreements apply, aligning his protections with other senior executives. Future company filings may detail how performance share metrics and vesting schedules link his realized compensation to long-term results.
8-K Event Classification
Key Figures
Key Terms
restricted stock unit financial
indemnification agreement regulatory
change of control severance agreement financial
forward-looking statements regulatory
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
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| Item 5.02. | Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers. |
The Board of Directors (the “Board”) of Rambus Inc. (“Rambus” or the “Company”) has appointed Sumeet Gagneja as the Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of the Company, effective April 29, 2026, reporting to Luc Seraphin, Chief Executive Officer of the Company. In connection with the appointment, John Allen will cease serving as the Company’s Interim Chief Financial officer, effective as of the same date, and will continue to serve as the Company’s Vice President, Accounting and Chief Accounting Officer.
Sumeet Gagneja, age 56, previously served as divisional Chief Financial Officer of the Data Center Segment at Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. from October 2024 to April 2026. Prior to that role, Mr. Gagneja was Senior Vice President, Chief Financial Officer of the Flash Business at Western Digital Corporation from September 2022 to October 2024. From November 2021 to September 2022, Mr. Gagneja served as Vice President, Corporate Controller at 10x Genomics, Inc. Mr. Gagneja was Chief Financial Officer at Innovium, Inc. from May 2021 to October 2021, before that company’s acquisition by Marvell Technology, Inc. Before joining Innovium, Inc., Mr. Gagneja served as Corporate Vice President and Chief Accounting Officer at Xilinx, Inc. from March 2019 to May 2021. Mr. Gagneja served as Vice President and Chief Accounting Officer of Maxim Integrated Products, Inc. (“Maxim Integrated”) from August 2017 to February 2019, and various finance roles at Maxim Integrated from 2013 to August 2017. Prior to joining Maxim Integrated, Mr. Gagneja held various finance positions at Broadcom Limited (previously Avago Technologies) and Intel Corporation. Mr. Gagneja received a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Punjab Engineering College, a M.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering from Wayne State University, and an M.B.A. degree from the University of Michigan (Stephen M. Ross) School of Business.
Mr. Gagneja’s annual compensation consists of a base salary of $475,000 and a target bonus of 75% of his base salary, with payment prorated for time actually served in 2026. Mr. Gagneja will also receive a new hire bonus of $300,000, a restricted stock unit (“RSU”) grant valued at $1,625,000, a performance share award grant valued at $1,625,000, and a new hire RSU grant valued at $3,000,000. The foregoing compensation terms are contained in Mr. Gagneja’s offer letter and are qualified by reference to the offer letter, which is attached hereto as Exhibit 10.1 and incorporated by reference herein.
The Company and Mr. Gagneja have also entered into a standard form of indemnification agreement, a copy of which is filed as Exhibit 10.1 to the Company’s quarterly report on Form 10-Q that was filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 7, 2021, and a standard form of change of control severance agreement for executive officers other than the CEO, a copy of which is filed as Exhibit 10.1 to the Company’s Form 8-K that was filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 9, 2015.
There are no family relationships between Mr. Gagneja and any of our directors or executive officers. There are no related party transactions between Mr. Gagneja and Rambus other than his employment relationship with Rambus. There are no arrangements or understandings between Mr. Gagneja and any other persons in connection with his employment by Rambus.
A copy of Rambus’ press release regarding these events is being furnished as Exhibit 99.1 to this Form 8-K. The exhibit attached hereto shall not be deemed “filed” for purposes of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”) or otherwise subject to the liabilities of that section, nor shall it be deemed incorporated by reference in any filing under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Exchange Act.
| Item 9.01 | Financial Statements and Exhibits. |
(d) Exhibits.
| 10.1 | Offer Letter between the Company and Mr. Gagneja, dated as of March 31, 2026. | |
| 99.1 | Press Release of Rambus, issued on April 29, 2026. | |
| 104 | Cover Page Interactive Data File (formatted as inline XBRL and contained in Exhibit 101) | |
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
| Date: April 29, 2026 |
Rambus Inc. | |||||
| /s/ John Shinn | ||||||
| John Shinn Senior Vice President and General Counsel | ||||||
Exhibit 99.1
Rambus Appoints Sumeet Gagneja as Chief Financial Officer
Industry-proven finance leader brings deep semiconductor, data center and AI-driven computing ecosystem expertise to support long-term profitable growth
SAN JOSE, Calif., April 29, 2026 — Rambus Inc. (NASDAQ: RMBS) today announced the appointment of Sumeet Gagneja as senior vice president and chief financial officer, effective April 29, 2026. Mr. Gagneja joins Rambus with more than two decades of financial and operational leadership across the semiconductor, data center, and AI-driven computing ecosystem. Mr. Gagneja will oversee the company’s global finance organization, including financial strategy, capital allocation, and investor engagement, reporting to president and chief executive officer Luc Seraphin.
“Sumeet is a highly experienced finance leader with deep knowledge of the semiconductor and data center ecosystem,” said Luc Seraphin, president and chief executive officer of Rambus. “He brings a strong track record of helping companies scale with disciplined execution and a focus on value creation, and will be an outstanding addition to the leadership team as we continue to drive long-term profitable growth.”
Mr. Gagneja most recently served as divisional CFO for AMD’s Data Center segment. Previously, he was CFO of Western Digital’s Flash business and held senior finance leadership roles at Xilinx, Innovium, Maxim Integrated, Avago, and Intel. Across these roles, he supported capital allocation, mergers and acquisitions, operational planning, and investor and analyst engagement, bringing a disciplined and execution-focused approach to scaling complex technology businesses.
“I am excited to join Rambus and support its continued progress,” said Mr. Gagneja. “The company has a strong foundation, a differentiated portfolio, and a clear opportunity to deliver long-term profitable growth. I look forward to working with the leadership team to help drive disciplined execution and create durable value for shareholders.”
Gagneja holds a Master of Business Administration with high distinction from the University of Michigan Ross School of Business and a master’s degree in mechanical engineering from Wayne State University. He is a California Certified Public Accountant.
About Rambus Inc.
Rambus delivers industry-leading chips and silicon IP for the data center and AI infrastructure. With over three decades of advanced semiconductor experience, our products and technologies address the critical bottlenecks between memory and processing to accelerate data-intensive workloads. By enabling greater bandwidth, efficiency and security across next-generation computing platforms, we make data faster and safer. For more information, visit rambus.com.
| © Rambus Inc. | CONFIDENTIAL |
Forward-Looking Statements
This release contains forward-looking statements under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including those relating to Rambus’ expectations regarding business opportunities, the Company’s ability to deliver long-term, profitable growth, product and investment strategies, and the Company’s outlook and financial guidance for the second quarter of 2026 and related drivers, and the Company’s ability to effectively manage market challenges. Such forward-looking statements are based on current expectations, estimates and projections, management’s beliefs and certain assumptions made by the Company’s management. Actual results may differ materially. The Company’s business generally is subject to a number of risks which are described more fully in Rambus’ periodic reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof.
Source: Rambus Inc.
| Contact: |
| Nicole Noutsios |
| Rambus Investor Relations |
| (510) 315-1003 |
| rambus@nmnadvisors.com |
| © Rambus Inc. | CONFIDENTIAL |