Synovus has a long-term incentive plan under which the Compensation and Human Capital Committee of the Board of Directors has the authority to grant share-based awards to Synovus employees. The 2021 Omnibus Plan authorized 5.8 million common share equivalents available for grants. Any restricted share units that are forfeited and options that expire unexercised will again become available for issuance under the 2021 Omnibus Plan. At December 31, 2023, Synovus had a total of 4.3 million common share equivalents of its authorized but unissued common stock reserved for future grants under the 2021 Omnibus Plan.

Total share-based compensation expense recognized for 2023, 2022, and 2021 is presented in the following table by its classification within total non-interest expense.


	Years Ended December 31,
(in thousands)	2023		2022		2021
Salaries and other personnel expense	$	30,610	$	26,751	$	26,957

Other operating expense	1,614		1,153		838
Total share-based compensation expense included in non-interest expense	$	32,224	$	27,904	$	27,795

No share-based compensation costs have been capitalized for the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022, and 2021. As of December 31, 2023, total unrecognized compensation cost related to the unvested portion of share-based compensation arrangements involving shares of Synovus stock was $35.4 million. This cost is expected to be recognized over a weighted average remaining period of 1.81 years.


Stock Options
	2023			2022			2021
(in thousands, except per share data)	Quantity	Weighted-Average Exercise Price		Quantity	Weighted-Average Exercise Price		Quantity	Weighted-Average Exercise Price
Outstanding at beginning of year	1,113	$	23.51	1,478	$	22.71	2,401	$	22.47

Options exercised	(697)	18.97		(365)	20.27		(923)	22.07
Options forfeited/expired/canceled	—	—		—	—		—	—
Options outstanding at end of year	416	$	31.13	1,113	$	23.51	1,478	$	22.71
Options exercisable at end of year	416	$	31.13	1,113	$	23.51	1,478	$	22.71

The aggregate intrinsic value for both outstanding and exercisable stock options at December 31, 2023 was $2.9 million with a weighted average remaining contractual life of 2.1 years. The intrinsic value of stock options exercised during the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022, and 2021 was $11.2 million, $10.0 million, and $21.3 million, respectively.

Compensation expense is measured based on the grant date fair value of restricted share units and performance share units. The fair value of restricted share units and performance share units that do not contain market conditions is equal to the market price of common stock on the grant date. The fair value of performance share units, which include a market condition, was estimated on the date of grant using a Monte Carlo simulation model with the following weighted average assumptions:


	2023		2022		2021
Risk-free interest rate	4.38	%	2.87	%	2.87	%
Expected stock price volatility	48.3		57.2		56.1
Simulation period	2.9 years		2.9 years		2.9 years

The stock price expected volatility was based on Synovus' annualized historical volatility for grants issued in 2023, 2022, and 2021. The Monte Carlo model estimates fair value based on 100,000 simulations of future share price using a theoretical model of stock price behavior.

Synovus granted performance share units, which included a market condition with respect to 50% of the award, to executive management during the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022, and 2021. The performance share units have a service-based vesting component, and the number of performance share units that will ultimately vest is based on plan-specific performance metrics.

A summary of restricted share units and performance share units outstanding and changes during the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022, and 2021 is presented below.


	Restricted Share Units			Performance Share Units
(in thousands, except per share data)	Quantity	Weighted-Average Grant Date Fair Value		Quantity	Weighted-Average Grant Date Fair Value
Outstanding at December 30, 2020	1,221	$	34.50	439	$	39.37
Granted	599	42.31		141	42.94

Vested	(482)	37.05		(58)	42.43
Forfeited	(93)	31.41		—	—
Outstanding at December 31, 2021	1,245	37.00		522	37.59
Granted	608	48.14		29	54.76
Vested	(571)	36.98		(45)	38.86
Forfeited	(58)	42.21		(34)	43.06
Outstanding at December 31, 2022	1,224	41.80		472	44.11
Granted	807	41.04		192	46.18
Vested	(654)	38.47		(170)	35.75
Forfeited	(84)	45.18		—	—
Outstanding at December 31, 2023	1,293	$	42.90	494	$	47.16

The total fair value of restricted share units vested during 2023, 2022, and 2021 was $26.1 million, $28.0 million, and $19.8 million, respectively. The total fair value of performance share units vested during 2023, 2022, and 2021 was $7.4 million, $2.2 million, and $2.4 million, respectively.

For the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022, and 2021, Synovus provided a 100% matching contribution on the first 5% of eligible employee 401(k) contributions for a total annual contribution of $25.2 million, $23.0 million, and $21.5 million, respectively.