JPMorgan sets $8.79b aside for pay
NEW YORK - JPMorgan Chase & Co., the second-largest US bank, set aside $8.79 billion for compensation and benefits for its investment-bank employees in the first nine months of 2009, enough to pay $353,834 to each.
The compensation reserve totaled 38 percent of revenue in the first three quarters, compared with 52 percent in the same period of 2008, New York-based JPMorgan said yesterday on its website. The amount per employee is less than the $386,429 that Goldman Sachs Group Inc. set aside for just the first half.
Paying less “is a risky strategy because we have seen some of the top bankers jump ship to some of the smaller firms out there,’’ William Fitzpatrick, an analyst at Optique Capital Management, said in an interview on Bloomberg Television. “But at this point are bankers really going to run away from an organization like JPMorgan?’’
The Group of 20 leaders agreed last month to adopt pay guidelines for banks and other firms that rein in risks by aligning bonuses and other pay to long-term performance.
US lawmakers are also studying Wall Street pay after spending almost $400 billion bailing out finance companies. JPMorgan repaid $25 billion of government money in June.
We always look at long-term, sustained performance,’’ Chief Executive Officer Jamie Dimon said on a conference call with analysts today. yesterday. “We will continue what we are doing. Industries have to pay for performance over time and we are committed to treating each individual properly.’’
