Fewer bonuses for bankers in the UK

One in three bankers in London walked away empty handed from the last bonus round, a survey by the recruitment firm Morgan McKinley showed on Thursday.

The percentage of bankers who received a bonus for last year fell to 68 per cent from 82 per cent in 2011, the lowest level since the survey started to track the data five years ago. Of those who did receive a bonus, 22 per cent said it was higher than last year and 41 percent said it was unchanged, the survey showed.

"There is much greater acceptance of the downward pressure on cost management and the knock-on effect on overall reward," Hakan Enver, a director at Morgan McKinley, said in a statement.

Enver said the research showed a "culture change" across London's financial centre. "Those receiving bonuses are now fewer in numbers, the amounts being paid out are dropping and individuals are less satisfied," he said.

About 36 per cent of bankers said they were satisfied with their bonus for last year, compared with 42 per cent a year earlier. Salary increases have also become less common. The percentage of financial professionals whose pay increased fell to 36 per cent last year from 47 per cent in 2011, the survey showed.

Banks have been shrinking their bonus pools to reduce costs in the face of higher capital requirements by regulators and a more difficult economic environment. Pressure on banks also comes from lawmakers. Amid opposition from Britain, the European Union voted in April to cap most banker bonuses at Europe's biggest financial institutions at one year's base salary in an effort to curb risky behaviour in the industry.

But Morgan McKinley said its survey showed a "lack of concern around the bonus cap" in London's financial district. The majority of financial professionals surveyed would not be affected because their bonuses are below the level of their salaries, the firm said.

© 2013 The New York Times News Service