Ex-Lehman Europe bankers claim $100m in lost pay
Nine former European bankers at Lehman Brothers are claiming over $100m in lost deferred compensation from the administrators of the collapsed US bank, with claims from other ex-senior staff likely to push the figure far higher, in a development that will further fuel debate about the use of long-term deferred pay structures.
Filings lodged last month with Lehman Brothers Holdings’ US administrators reveal that a number of former Europe-based bankers have filed creditor claims seeking a total of $106.4m (€71.59m).
They include: former co-chief executives of investment banking for Europe and the Middle East Riccardo Banchetti and Christian Meissner; ex-European mergers and acquisitions head Adrian Mee; former co-head of fixed income for Europe and the Middle East Georges Assi; and Makram Azar, who was Lehman’s global head of sovereign wealth funds and chairman of media investment banking for Europe and the Middle East.
All the bankers cite deferred compensation or restricted stock units as the basis of their claims. Many have since joined Nomura, the Japanese bank that took over parts of Lehman Brothers’ European and Asian business last year.
The claims come as regulators around the world are moving to restrict excessive and inappropriate bonus structures in the wake of the financial crisis, and have called for investment banking compensation structures to be aligned with banks’ long-term profitability. These include reward elements being deferred, as opposed to using structures that can encourage short-term excessive risk-taking by traders.
Financial News lists below the claims from the ex-Europe-based bankers for compensation, covering up to five years prior to Lehman Brothers’ collapse:
Riccardo Banchetti – $26.04m Georges Assi – $18.6m Christian Meissner – $17.3m Giancarlo Saronne – $12.88m Adrian Mee – $11.2m Harsh Shah – $10.95m Makram Azar – $5.45m Fabrizio Cesario – $3m Calvert ‘Gunner’ Burkhart – $1m
del.icio.us
Digg
Newsvine
reddit
StumbleUpon