Virgin Mobile USA's chief executive was paid $11.7 million (£5.9 million) last year despite the phone operator's market value declining by nearly $700 million.

Dan Schulman, who has run the company since it was set up in 2001, received a salary of $590,000, two bonsuses of over $600,000 each and share options worth $9.5 million despite the plummeting stock price.

Virgin Mobile USA, which is 37 per cent owned by Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Group, listed its shares in New York at $15 each last October.

The share price has since fallen 87 per cent to $2.10, wiping about $700 million off its value. Mr Schulman’s 2007 remuneration was equivalent to 10 per cent of the company’s current market capitalisation.

The share price collapse has also wiped $250 million off the value of Sir Richard’s holding but the billionaire entrepreneur has backed the US group to shrug off its difficulties when the economy improves.

Sir Richard said: "There are cycles. I don't think the consumer downturn in America will be more than 12 months. It's likely to be 12 months."

Virgin Mobile USA offers only pay-as-you-go services, which are typically used by the sort of lower-income consumers who are most likely to be affected by an economic downturn. Virgin is also under pressure from price-cutting rivals who need to keep subscriber numbers high.

Mr Schulman said yesterday: "The rock in our slingshot against these goliaths is focus.”

His aim is to grow the company’s customer base from 30 million to about 50 million in two years.

"There'll be some years we may not achieve that. Other years we'll beat it," he said.

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