DiNapoli: Average Wall Street bonus nearly $122K

Profits and bonuses are up at Wall Street firms, according to an analysis released Tuesday by Comptroller Tom DiNapoli, but there are fewer high-paying securities jobs in New York than there were before the 2008 financial collapse, and no prospect for major hiring on the horizon.

“I think it is a mixed bag. The good news is, certainly compared to last year, we’re seeing a return to profitability,” DiNapoli, a Democrat, said a press conference in New York City. But: “Part of what the firms have been doing is reducing head count. … So even when you see the bonus numbers and the total bonus pool up 8% and the average bonus up 9%, part of that is because there are fewer people.”

DiNapoli’s analysis deals with the broker-dealer firms on the New York Stock Exchange — some 200 companies — so it’s not a holistic picture of what is now a more diversified financial sector. Still, his office estimated those firms would book $23.9 billion in profits for 2012 — that’s triple the amount for 2011 — and the cash bonus pool this year would be $20 billion. That’s up slightly from 2011, but less than the $30-plus billion that was paid to traders in 2006 and 2007.
The average bonus this season is $121,890, also up slightly from 2011 but lower than historic highs. DiNapoli said firms pushed their payments into 2012 as opposed to the early days of 2013 in likely response to higher federal tax rates that took effect with the new year. On Monday, DiNapoli reported this had caused a spike in state revenue collections; because New York State operates on an April 1 to March 31 fiscal year, the shift should not affect the state budget, DiNapoli said.
DiNapoli’s report also included salary data from 2011, the most recent year available. Employees of broker dealer firms earned an average salary and bonus of $362,950 — a higher figure than before the financial crisis. That’s more than five times the average salary in New York City. DiNapoli also said that while Wall Street firms constitute 5.3 percent of private sector jobs in New York City, they account for 23.2 percent of private sector wages.
The number of people employed by the broker dealer firms was roughly 170,000 at the end of last year, DiNapoli said, roughly the same as it was at the end of 2011. But that’s lower than pre-crash headcount of 189,000 in November, 2007: DiNapoli said firms shed roughly 28,000 during the financial crisis, but have added only 8,500 back. The all-time high for Wall Street employment was 200,300 in December, 2000.
“It’s great work if you can get it,” DiNapoli said.
The below chart shows the average bonus and total bonus pool stretching to 1985:

avgbonus by JimmyVielkind