Arden sees wages and profits sliding

Stockbrokers' basic pay is falling for the first time in decades, the chief executive of institutional broker Arden Partners said yesterday.

"There is wage deflation in broking for the first time in my 26 years in the industry," said Jonathan Keeling. "Good people are knocking on our door and offering to come and work for us at competitive prices."

Arden's headline profit dived by a third to £1m in the first six months but for the first time since the financial crisis broke four years ago it is paying a dividend, albeit a modest 0.65p a share. Revenue dropped from £7.4m to £5.6m and the wage bill was cut by 24 per cent to £2.4m.