Credit Suisse ups salaries
SWISS bank Credit Suisse is increasing the base salaries of its executives to compensate for new regulatory limits on bonuses.
The changes, including plans to link deferred bonuses to performance and the share price, will come into effect from January and apply to around 7,000 staff – 15 per cent of the bank’s workforce.
The bank entered the debate on bonuses as leading banking industry figures warned Britain’s top politicians that continued posturing on the issue could irreparably damage the City’s competitiveness.
The news came a day after London Mayor Boris Johnson performed a dramatic U-turn on his supportive stance for bankers, labelling them “cockroaches” in a newspaper column.
But Alan Yarrow, chairman of the London Investment Banking Association (LIBA), said: “The discussion on bonuses is bordering on the hysterical and we are in danger of detracting from the benefits of the City to the economy as a whole.”
And Angela Knight, chief executive of the British Bankers’ Association, called on politicians to recognise the “logical argument”, saying: “The City is a great asset to the UK economy, and one we certainly cannot afford to lose.”