$39 billion: The Wall Street bonuses for the big five investment banks last year.
By on Sep 22nd, 2008 at 9:45 am
$39 billion: The Wall Street bonuses for the big five investment banks last year.
ABC News reports:
In 2007, Wall Street’s five biggest firms — Bear Stearns, Goldman Sachs, Lehman Brothers, Merrill Lynch, and Morgan Stanley — paid a record $39 billion in bonuses to themselves.
That’s $10 billion more than the $29 billion loan taxpayers are making to J.P. Morgan to save Bear Stearns.
Those 2007 bonuses were paid even though the shareholders in those firms last year collectively lost about $74 billion in stock declines — their worst year since 2002.
These company executives are still fiercely fighting to protect their pay. Politico notes that the Bush Treasury Department is “resisting efforts” by House Democrats “to impose pay limits on Wall Street executives and bankers.”
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40 Responses to “$39 billion: The Wall Street bonuses for the big five investment banks last year.”
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If the compensation for the top executives of the company are materially affecting the earnings of the company then you have criminals running the company, plain and simple. These executives are stealing this money from the shareholders and employees of these companies. It's a clear sign that they care more about their paycheck then they do about the needs o the company. I wish the institutional shareholders would wake up and realize that anyone who would pay themselves this much money starts out a bad executive, and can only go downhill from there.
September 22nd, 2008 at 9:52 amFCUK YOU REPUBLICAN TRAITORS.
FCUK YOU AND BURN IN HELL.
September 22nd, 2008 at 9:55 amThis is why Bush is president -- to make sure his "base" can grab as much money as they possibly can before he leaves office.
Mission Accomplished.
September 22nd, 2008 at 9:56 amHouse Democrats need to be LOUD about this issue.
September 22nd, 2008 at 10:03 amRemove the Social Security cap, and make these folks pay on every dollar of their golden parachutes. It's about the only way we'll recoup some of the money.
September 22nd, 2008 at 10:06 amNationalizing successfull businesses = teribly unamerican socialism
Nationalizing failed businesses which become horrid taxpayer drains = gods finest example of capitalism in action...
September 22nd, 2008 at 10:07 amI have a lot of trouble with the idea that someone making minimum wage has to pay taxes to bail out a financial industry with CEOs still collecting fat paychecks.
Where is tha **ACCOUNTABILITY** as in "Accountability President", Accountants, etc.
September 22nd, 2008 at 10:10 amGeez, folks...
I'm not sensing a lot of warmth & acceptance here this morning for the bail out plan... what's up w/ that? Our billionaire banking execs NEED THEIR BONUSES!!
September 22nd, 2008 at 10:11 amProof once more of how right John McCain was about deregulation. Wait, not right. What's the other one? Ah -- catastrophically wrong.
September 22nd, 2008 at 10:11 amI just heard, C-Span is about to have Harvey Pitt as a guest.
Sounds like another Bushie, throwing George an anchor...
September 22nd, 2008 at 10:12 amThe bail out of Wall St. should include strict congressional oversite, quarterly audits, increased taxes on the industy so that hopefully, the public can get some benefit from these "loans", and reduced pay for executives.
September 22nd, 2008 at 10:12 amLadies and gentlemen, allow me to present to you . . .
September 22nd, 2008 at 10:15 amTheee most successful criminal in the history of the civilized world, an accomplished mass murderer, the president of the United States . .
george w. bush.
The Mafia bosses always live in luxury. Ironically, Wall Street is no more because of the soaring cost of their "protection schemes".
Credit derivatives, credit default swaps, served as "insurance" for mortgage backed securities. This form of legalized betting went through the roof (according to the Wall Street Journal.)
The cost to "insure" $10 million in mortgage backed securities ranged from 24 to 48% for a five year period. The investor would need to get a 5 to 10% higher annual return to make up for this added cost.
The failure of credit derivatives locks up the market, either way. People don't buy uncovered debt in today's market. And they sure won't pay 48% on insurance for a 6% annual return.
September 22nd, 2008 at 10:19 amWhy should we feel sorry for these greedy bosses of these corporations,who want to look capitalists when they make ton of money,but they want to be socialists by asking Americans to bail them out,when they mess up?
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/521000-the-average-pay-of-goldman-sachs-employees-173-and-that-includes-secretaries-466273.html
September 22nd, 2008 at 10:19 amThis is one of the best examples of Naomi Klein's "Shock Doctrine" in action. While those of us on Main Street are reeling from the shock of total economic collapse, the thieves and butchers on Wall Street are gathering up the loot (with help from BushCo) and running out the door leaving us with the tab. This just completes the task for which they put Bush into office 8 years ago -- raiding the US treasury and transferring all of that wealth to their corporate buddies just before they all scurry back into their private sector ratholes.
My disgust is beyond quantitation.
September 22nd, 2008 at 10:20 amCSPAN has the most ignorant people calling in blaming Democrats and Bill Clinton for the failure.
I guess that's what happens when the level of analysis from Bush/Paulson is "credit markets seized up."
September 22nd, 2008 at 10:22 amLet me see if I have this right.
Individuals who purchased more house than they could afford or got themselves into risky adjustable mortgages are on their own and unworthy of assistance from the government.
Banking/brokerage companies that paid out more in bonuses than was justified by their performance and their financial resources and "victims of circumstance" and need to be bailed out by the American taxpayers -- including the ones who are either struggling with escalating mortagage costs or have lost a home because of it.
Is that what GDumbya, Paulson and the rest are proposing here? Seems to me that something is wrong with this picture.
September 22nd, 2008 at 10:24 amTreasury argues that the requirements will make it harder to convince companies to sell their troubled assets to the government
uh.. like they should have any say in this now???
AS IF!
September 22nd, 2008 at 10:24 amTo all the people who say that you must pay big bucks to get the top talent in these roles, I have one question for you:
These imbeciles have nearly ruined what is left of the country!
September 22nd, 2008 at 10:25 amGeez, folks…
I’m not sensing a lot of warmth & acceptance here this morning for the bail out plan… what’s up w/ that? Our billionaire banking execs NEED THEIR BONUSES!!
___________
lo ridiculously l
September 22nd, 2008 at 10:27 amoops, now!
September 22nd, 2008 at 10:29 amunbelievable Says:
To all the people who say that you must pay big bucks to get the top talent in these roles, I have one question for you:
What talent?
These imbeciles have nearly ruined what is left of the country!
__________
you don't think that's a talent? oh, come know the fine art of royally f@#king up has been practiced and refined for centuries!
September 22nd, 2008 at 10:29 amUnB, it takes a great deal of talent to steal billions of dollars right out from under the noses of the taxpayers.
The Wall Street magicians, with the help of the GOP and McCain's advisor, Phil Gramm, have made our collective future disappear right before our eyes.
PEACE
September 22nd, 2008 at 10:31 amHey ninique, long time no read. Glad you're back!
September 22nd, 2008 at 10:31 amCheck out C-Span's coverage of the House.
Dem. Pete DeFazio's chewing the scenery.
Steam is rolling off Cliff Stearns, (R.) Fla.
This is bipartisan outrage.
Bush messed up, big-time.
September 22nd, 2008 at 10:40 amninique Says: you don’t think that’s a talent? oh, come know the fine art of royally f@#king up has been practiced and refined for centuries!
Apparently it's an over-rated one :)
September 22nd, 2008 at 10:46 amspencers mom Says: The Wall Street magicians, with the help of the GOP and McCain’s advisor, Phil Gramm, have made our collective future disappear right before our eyes.
There have been average citizens posting this inevitable collapse on blogs for years. Clearly, many people knew it was coming, but I suppose doing anything about it conflicted with the show times for American Idol and Survivor....
If anything good comes out of this, it's that Obama will win big 43 days from now.
September 22nd, 2008 at 10:49 amBush's legacy:
Two costly wars with unknown outcome or a way out soon.
September 22nd, 2008 at 10:57 amCostly and unbearable deficit.
Costly energy crisis..with no solution in sight.
And now:
Costly Stock Market bailout...a big loot is in the making.
Quit your Belly Ache'n everybody...
The Lords of Wall Street get Bonuses
&
King Bush sent us all that Stimulus Check!
So it's all even-steven!
September 22nd, 2008 at 11:03 amThis CEO compensation question seems to be going the way of the telecom immunity bill where the taxpayers got the shaft. Let's not let that happen. This is the time to have some backbone you congressional delegates. Stand up for your employers, the US.
September 22nd, 2008 at 11:33 amThis past week's financial meltdown underscore the lunacy that is Charles Krauthammer. This nut undoubtedly has OD'd on the Administration's kool-ade and gobbles up the Executive semen as though it were his lifeblood:
http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2008/sep/21/charles-krauthammer-bushs-internal-compass-has/
Any trolls out their care to chime in on Krauthammer's behalf?
September 22nd, 2008 at 11:33 amI think these crooks should become works employees for the government and should have to work with their hands rebuilding our crumbling infrastructure.
September 22nd, 2008 at 11:58 amI hope Congress sticks to its guns and refuse to pay for the golden parachutes for the CEOs. As a taxpayer and someone that has investments, I don't object to helping keep the investments of Americans safe. I strongly object to paying these outrageous salaries to the very CEOs that caused the financial problems.
September 22nd, 2008 at 12:13 pmthanks Zooey, hi to you too! I thought I'd drop by to see if our Country has sunk to a new low and naturally it has!
September 22nd, 2008 at 12:14 pmZero percent of Americans thinking economy is on the rise- lol
September 22nd, 2008 at 12:15 pmthough I really should be crying ol
September 22nd, 2008 at 12:16 pmConsidering that lying and fearmongering are Bushco's MO, why should anyone believe them when they claim that these people need to be bailed out or terrible things will happen? What terrible things? Does Goldman Sachs have WMDs? Will the guerilla remnants of Lehman Bros. nuke the East Coast? I just bought a copy of "Shock Doctrine" last night so I can read along with what Bushco and its coconspirators are doing to us today.
September 22nd, 2008 at 12:19 pm$39 billion????
Then let them bailout wall street.
And Bush wants NO oversight????????
September 22nd, 2008 at 3:07 pmNo Effin' way!
Stop freaking out over the word Bonus because you don't get one. All these people here calling these employees criminals ares just retarded.
These companies are all big time New York investment companies. Their employees income is primarily made up of bonuses, their salaries never get that big.
Allow me to break it down a different way
Middle Class: Paid by the hour
Upper Class: Paid in bonuses, stocks, ect.
Someone out of business school can make around 250k a year in New York.
September 22nd, 2008 at 7:41 pm110 of that is his salary
140 of that is his bonus
The story that really got my goat was the recent payout of about 5-7 Billion to Meryl Lynch executives 2 days after they received government money via Bank of America. That is really bordering on criminal!
David
February 11th, 2009 at 12:58 pm