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Half of bankers enjoy bigger annual bonuses

Steve Slater
Wednesday 26 January 2011 01:00 GMT
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Half of bankers in Britain and the US have received higher bonuses for 2010 than they did for the year before, despite sluggish investment banking performances

A survey by the eFinancialCareers website found that 49 per cent of bankers in Britain had enjoyed bigger bonuses and only a quarter had seen a fall. In the US, 56 per cent said their bonuses were larger this year and 19 per cent said they had fallen. The average US bonus was down 5 per cent, however.

Some 59 per cent of bankers surveyed in Hong Kong, Singapore and Australia said their bonuses had increased, while only 16 per cent reported a decrease.

Bankers' pay has come under intense scrutiny after the financial crisis saw many lenders having to be bailed out by taxpayers. The public backlash against bonuses is particularly intense in Britain, where the average bonus for front-office professionals was £84,409 – 5 per cent more than the year before, the survey found. The British Government said yesterday that it was still seeking an agreement with banks to curb bonuses and improve lending, despite reports that the talks had stalled.

EFinancialCareers said its survey was conducted this month and was based on 2,511 respondents.

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