Standard Chartered has hiked payouts for it top bankers, who are set to share a $1.6bn (£1.3bn) bonus pool after rising global interest rates pushed the lender’s profits up 28%.
The London-headquartered but emerging markets-focused bank said it had increased staff bonuses by 16% in light of the fact that the bank had performed strongly despite “ongoing external challenges”, including the impact of the war in Ukraine.
The bump in payouts also benefited the chief executive, Bill Winters, whose own pay rose 16% to $5.5m for 2022, thanks to a $2.5m bonus that rose in line with profits.
But the top boss was outdone by at least one unnamed banker who was paid more than €13m (£11.5m) last year, according to Standard Chartered’s latest disclosures regarding its highest-earning staff. In total, 250 earned more than €1m last year, seven of whom were paid more than €5m.
While the bank, which makes most of its profits in Asia but also operates in Africa and the Middle East, did not provide any details regarding its highest earners in its annual report, it said it had reacted to high inflation by making “targeted changes to salaries” to support colleagues in markets with the “most extreme economic conditions”. This resulted in a 6.6% rise in its average pay for its nearly-83,200 global staff, though the biggest increases were aimed at its most junior colleagues and those in countries hardest hit by rising prices.
However, the same rising inflation trends have resulted in higher global interests rates that have ultimately benefited banks including Standard Chartered, which reported a 12% rise in net interest income. Net interest income accounts for the difference in what is earned from charges on loans and mortgages and what is paid out to savers.
Even when accounting for a surge in the amount of cash it put aside for potential defaults, which rose from $263m to $838m, Standard Chartered reported a 28% rise in pre-tax profits to $4.3bn.
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Standard Chartered said the relaxing of Covid restrictions in China were providing further “grounds for optimism in 2023”.
