Regulating Banking Bonuses in the European Union: A Case Study in Unintended Consequences
40 Pages Posted: 19 Mar 2013 Last revised: 11 Nov 2013
There are 2 versions of this paper
Regulating Banking Bonuses in the European Union: A Case Study in Unintended Consequences
Regulating Banking Bonuses in the European Union: A Case Study in Unintended Consequences
Date Written: April 25, 2013
Abstract
On 27 February 2013, the European Union (EU) reached a provisional deal to limit the amount of bankers’ bonuses to the amount of fixed remuneration (i.e., a one-to-one ratio); the cap could be increased to 2:1 with the backing of a supermajority of shareholders. I demonstrate that the pending EU regulations restrictions will: (1) increase rather than decrease incentives for excessive risk taking; (2) result in significant increase in fixed remuneration; (3) reduce incentives to create value; (4) reduce the competitiveness of the EU banking sector; and (5) result in a general degradation in the quality of EU investment bankers, thereby decreasing access to capital and increasing the cost of capital in the European Union.
Keywords: Executive compensation, CEO pay, Banking Bonuses, Financial Crisis, Regulation, European Union
JEL Classification: G32, G34, G38, J33, M12, M52, N20
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation
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