SiliconBeat

Diosado Banatao has decided its time he accept a salary for his role as interim chief executive at Sirf Technology, the troubled supplier of chips and software that last month announced its agreement to be acquired by CSR, the British supplier of Bluetooth connectivity tools.

Banatao, a Sirf co-founder and chairman of its board, became interim CEO last April following the surprise resignation of the company’s previous CEO, Michael Canning. Sirf shares jumped 15 percent to $6.34 after news of Banatao’s return as CEO, even on an interim basis.

The shares soon resumed falling, however, with Sirf’s stock price hitting a then all-time low of $2.15 in August on the heels of an unfavorable patent ruling. They sank as low as 91 cents in January prior to the offer by CSR, which is an all stock deal that valued Sirf at about $1.55 per share, or $136 million, the day it was offered.

Since taking over last April, Banatao has not taken any compensation for performing CEO duties. But on March 10 he “accepted” a monthly salary of $30,000, retroactive to Jan. 1. No equity awards were included. How long he will receive the salary is unclear, but the acquisition by CSR is expected to be finalized by June 30.