NEARLY 6000 UK employees at US banking giant Goldman Sachs are among staff sharing out £8.1 billion in pay and bonuses for 2012 after it posted better-than-expected profits.
The total pay package – based on its global headcount of 32,400 – equates to an average of £249,977 for each of its employees and is 6% higher than in 2011.
Its bumper pay and bonus deal is likely to further stoke controversy after Goldman was yesterday forced to back down on plans to defer bonus payments to UK staff until the new financial year after Bank of England Governor Sir Mervyn King attacked the move.
Fellow US investment banking group JP Morgan Chase also posted full-year figures revealing its staff salary and bonus bill soared to £19.1bn, up 5% on 2011.
But the company's chief executive Jamie Dimon saw his annual bonus cut in half – to £6.3m – after a damning report following an investigation into its "London Whale" trading loss.
Both firms reported strong figures. Goldman net earnings nearly trebled to £4.6bn in 2012, while JP Morgan posted a record £13.2bn profit after a 53% surge in the final quarter.
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