PartyGaming, whose shares have dropped 80 per cent from their peak this year, has scrapped a key performance target for its chief executive and awarded him a new package of options and bonuses valued at almost $20 million at today's price.

The new compensation plan for Mitch Garber are designed to "mitigate the loss of value" which senior directors have suffered as a result of the action of the US authorities in closing down the group's online gaming operations which targeted Americans.

Mr Garber has been granted 15 million new share options which can be encashed over the next two years, the performance goals on 20 million of his existing 27 million options have been scrapped, he will get a further two million shares and £3 million in cash providing he stays until May 1 2009 and will receive a minimum bonus of £2 million provided he remains until December 1 next year.

At today's share price, of just over 31p, the total package is worth almost £20 million.

The group's finance director Martin Weigold has had hit options doubled to almost 18 million valued at £5.6 million today.

Both Mr Garber and Mr Weigold will be able to encash most of the options between May and December next year and all of them by December 2008.

A further 50 million 'nil cost options' has been granted to what the group says are other key employees of the group.

PartyGaming shares, floated at around 130p in the summer of last year, hit a peak of 173p within the first few days of listing but dropped sharply when US authorities moved to close its US-facing operations.

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