Thursday’s headlines: NYC Comptroller Calls for Tougher Bank Exec Clawbacks

New York City’s comptroller called for big banks to issue clawback policies for senior executives in an effort to discourage risky practices. John Liu, who oversees $108 billion in pension funds, filed shareholder requests with Goldman, JPMorgan Chase and Morgan Stanley – requesting the banks toughen their policies which allow firms to demand pay be returned in the case of improper behavior, according to a Wall Street Journal article.

Lui said in a statement: “No one should profit or be rewarded with bonuses when engaged in improper or unethical behavior. These tougher clawback provisions will not only recover money that shouldn’t have been paid in the first place, but also set the tone for a stronger standard of conduct for company executives as well as their bosses.”

JPMorgan Chase and Goldman both try to recoup executive pay in the case of material losses – a standard Lui deems requiring unrealistically high standards. He called for all three firms to make all clawback actions public.

 

Other News:

Ameriprise hiring was up 40 percent in 2011 on wire house fatigue. [Investment News]

BofA's agreed to a record $335 million settlement for charges that it discriminated against minority home-buyers. [Reuters]

Allstate proposes a lesser paycut plan than originally the insurer sought. [WSJ]

European investment banking fees at lowest level in more than a ­decade. [Financial Times]

London stockbrokers are shrinking their businesses. [Businessweek]

Credit Suisse bankers’ pay has dropped by 6 percent since 2008. [Bloomberg]

UBS won the top spot for investment banking fees in Asia for the 8th year, but the future is uncertain. [WSJ]

Silver Lake founders are reducing their stake in the private equity giant. [Businessweek]

Private equity firm Leonard Green raises $4 billion for its sixth fund. [Bloomberg]

Malaysia is relaxing its rules for foreign bank ownership. [Bloomberg]

Raymond James is setting up a bidding contest with Stifel to buy Morgan Keegan. [DealBook]

Finra regulators conducted twice as many branch exams in 2011 than the previous year. [Investment News]