Grim year for China’s bankers and brokers as pay slashed

EMPLOYEES at some of China’s biggest financial institutions, including top executives, took big pay cuts last year as salaries and bonuses were hit by a drop in profits and the industry stepped into line with government demands to control excessive remuneration.

The annual reports of listed brokerages and banks reveal the hit executives in the financial sector took to their pay packets in 2022. Average compensation at many securities firms fell roughly 20 per cent, with some senior executives facing a bigger cut of more than 30 per cent. While overall pay levels among banks remained stable, some top management saw their remuneration squeezed.

The cuts partly reflect a poor year for the financial sector with sales, capital markets, and investment returns falling amid the economic slowdown triggered by Covid-19 lockdowns, while banks’ margins were squeezed as interest rates on loans fell.