Front office bonuses appear to have DOUBLED, and are now 8 times higher than in the middle office

12 February 2010

1 minute read

Front office bonuses appear to have DOUBLED, and are now 8 times higher than in the middle office

As you may have read elsewhere, we released our bonus survey results today.

The headline numbers make interesting reading: average bonuses are up 40%, and salaries have risen. Two thirds of respondents said their salary had increased 26% on last year.

Most interesting, however (and not available elsewhere), are the figures underpinning the headline stats. They show that:

· The mean front office bonus in London for 2009 is 254k; this compares to 120k for 2008.

· The median front office bonus in London for 2009 is 50k; this compares to 25k for

2008.

· The mean middle office bonus in London for 2009 is 32.5k; this compares to 19.3k for 2008.

· The median middle office bonus in London for 2009 is 13k; this compares to 7.4k for 2008.

Conclusion: some people have been paid extremely well this year. However, and contrary to popular perception, six figure bonuses aren't the norm - only 25% of front office respondents at all levels of seniority are getting one.

AUTHORSarah Butcher

Global Editor

Sa
Sarah, Editor, eFinancialCaree
15 February 2010
@Jamie - we can't provide the full figures unfortunately. I'll try to produce a more detailed breakdown later today though - depending upon the sample size on a sector by sector basis.
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ja
jamie
15 February 2010
where can we read the full survey sarah? thanks
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Wr
Wrong
15 February 2010
Not realistic. These numbers are way too high. Trouble is, people like to inflate their bonuses, it makes them feel better, stronger, more valuable... Even if the survey is anonymous, ego matters.
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T.
T. Sternlicht
15 February 2010
Pink Swan is correct. 254k sterling seems way to high/ Just compare it to the figures about avg comp/head which is salary inclusive.
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Pi
Pink Swan
14 February 2010
The mean is often a long way from the median in economic variables so the results make sense. e.g. your MD might get 10* as much as you.
The results might fluctuate a lot based on how many big hitters happened to respond in each year.
The sample taken might also not be representative - for example perhaps those who responded tended to be the ones who were happy with their bonus and wanted to shout about it.
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