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Wall Street Bonuses See 17% Gain

NEW YORK CITY-The securities industry's return to health is signaled by bigger bonuses, heftier profits and a renewal of hiring, state comptroller DiNapoli said Tuesday.

By Paul Bubny | Updated on February 23, 2010

NEW YORK CITY-Wall Street’s 2009 bonus pool deepened by 17% to an estimated $20.3 billion, the fourth-largest on record, after a 47% decline amid the post-collapse uncertainty of late 2008, state comptroller Thomas DiNapoli said Tuesday. While welcoming the securities industry’s return to profitability following its record $42.6-billion losses in ’08—a revival with numerous positive implications for commercial real estate—DiNapoli endorsed reforms to the compensation structure.

“We cannot see a repeat of the risky behavior that crippled our economy,” DiNapoli says in a statement. “Tying compensation to long-term sustainable profits is a step in the right direction. We also need the right level of regulatory protections to make sure the securities industry thrives without driving the rest of us out on a fragile economic limb.”

The average taxable bonus for ’09 rose to $123,850, up 25% from the ’08 figure of $99,200 per capita, but well below the record $191,360 average for 2006, according to figures released by DiNapoli’s office. Additionally, compensation represents a smaller share of net revenue: 40%, compared to upwards of 50% in former years. Average total compensation for New York City-based securities employees rose 27% to $340,000 in ’09, DiNapoli said.

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