James Moore: Now German bankers act like bankers
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Your support makes all the difference.Outlook If you thought it was just the Anglo-Saxons in British and American banks that made Gordon Gecko look like a philanthropist, think again. One of the more interesting figures to come out of Deutsche Bank's results yesterday was that Deutsche has set aside more for bonus payments than even Goldman Sachs, which until now was the epitome of all that is wrong with the industry.
They may be talking about a bonus cup in Germany, but that only applies to banks with state support – as Deutsche has shown. Employees at its corporate and investment bank will enjoy an average of €285,352, or $394,449 (£250,400), each. Goldman bankers, poor things, will have to make do with a mere $370,706.
Of course, the comparison is not without flaws. Goldman's figures, unlike Deutsche's, include employees in divisions such as asset management, where pay might not be so high, and support staff (where it certainly won't be). But by contrast with Goldman, Deutsche actually increased the proportion of revenues set aside for bonuses, airily sniffing that "talent" is expensive. In other words, critics can lump it. Anglo-Saxon, or just Saxon, the song remains the same.
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