compensation

Jamie Dimon, 55, head of JP Morgan Chase became one of the most discussed people this week.  According to AP the compensation of Dimon in 2010 rose to $20.8 million from $12.7 million in 2009.  

Over 18 million stock options were granted by Citigroup to its 15 senior executives. The award may significantly increase compensation for these managers if the bank’s share price rises someday. The options were disclosed in regulatory filing submitted this week.

Citi awarded 2 million options to Chief Operating Officer John Havens and Americas Consumer Banking CEO Manuel Medina-Mora each. Meantime, Chief Financial Officer John Gerspach was awarded 1.5 million options.

Reuters/IFR conducted a global poll of bankers which revealed that from Wall Street to the City of London to Hong Kong's Central District, bankers are bracing for bonuses to be down 7 percent on average from a year ago, and higher salaries will only partially cushion the hit.

A number of the industry experts expect 30% decline after weak trading results that are depressing bank profits and shrinking the bonus pool.

Bankers are known to rely heavily on year-end bonuses for a large portion of their yearly compensation.

Goldman Sachs Group is being sued by an institutional investor who claims the firm is preparing to pay out improper bonuses.

The lawsuit, filed with the New York Supreme Court by the Security Police and Fire Professionals of America Retirement Fund, names chief executive Lloyd Blankfein and other executives and board members as defendants.

Goldman has faced a maelstrom of criticism for setting aside billions for year-end payouts soon after the firm paid back its $10 billion taxpayer bailout.

According to the Wall Street Journal Sunday report, five AIG’s senior executives unveiled last week they may quit if their compensation was reduced significantly by Kenneth Feinberg.

 They indicated December 1, in written notices, that they were prepared to leave by year-end. However, two of them changed their minds over the weekend.

 AIG, which was propped up by the government with some $180 billion in taxpayer funds, has been sparring with the Obama administration's pay czar, Kenneth Feinberg, over executive compensation.

 Goldman Sachs has recently become the main subject of the media announcements because of the size of its staff bonuses. Lloyd Blankfein, the chief executive of Goldman Sachs, commented the reports, saying that he believes banks serve a social purpose and are doing "God's work."

Mr. Blankfein gave an interview to London’s Sunday Times newspaper in which he also said he believed big profits and bonuses at banks were a sign that the world economy was recovering.

 The Obama administration's executive pay czar said his authority should not be expanded beyond setting compensation guidelines for seven banks and automakers that have received extraordinary taxpayer bailouts.

Kenneth Feinberg, the U.S. Treasury bailout program's special master for compensation, told lawmakers in prepared testimony scheduled for delivery on Wednesday that his authority should remain limited to the firms specified by the Treasury.

 Christian Noyer, a European Central Bank Governing Council member, delivering a speech at a financial conference in Singapore on Monday, said that banks are taking today the same risks that were at the heart of the world financial crisis and said that instead of paying immense compensations to their managers banks need to preserve more capital.

 Being a good example of democratic and rightful society America has still retained many prejudices. In particular this is much evident when it comes to women’s role in the economical and political live of the nation. Forbes magazine published a post where it cited some most paid female CEOs in the US with a clause that says women are still less compensated on these positions than their male peers.

Kenneth Feinberg, the US government's "pay czar", appointed by the White House to review and approve compensation for top executives at the seven companies receiving "exceptional" support from the government, suggested outgoing CEO Kenneth Lewis not to take any compensation for 2009.