I was paid $165k a year by a neobank startup to.....build their bank. It's now responsible for over $200mm a year in revenue. I was the sole engineer on the project.
Good engineers are worth their weight in gold.
Good engineers are worth their weight in gold.
Engineers like many people that build useful things, provide orders of magnitude more value than what they get for their labor.
The money probably goes to management, who stuck during the entire story - which OP didn't. It also goes to current employees who, by their number alone require more money. And of course to stakeholder who paid for OP $165k when the bank was making $0.
I did unimaginable things for one company, only to understand the value years later.