While everyone else was preparing for a weekend of barbecuing both themselves and sausages, Morgan Stanley let it be known on Friday that it’s following Merrill Lynch and UBS, and raising salaries.

The Wall Street Journal reports that the bank is raising the base salaries of ‘most of its top officers and many top-earning employees in an effort to reduce the importance of their annual bonuses.’ As at Merrill, base salaries for managing directors are likely to rise from around $250 to $400k. 25-30% of total comp will come from base salary in future, up from 15-20% historically.

BarCap wants to hire 15 to 25 M&A bankers in Britain and 30 to 40 in Italy, Germany and France. (Guardian)

I have seen Managing Directors with backgrounds in Credit, Corporate Financiers, Accountants and Graduates pleading to work for free. (Fintag)

80% of convertible bond traders have lost their jobs. (Financial News)

Greenhill has hired 21 managing directors since Jan 2008. (Financial News)

Big RBS exodus coming. (Independent)

RBS chiefs get shares worth 5m. (The Times)

Brazilian Development Bank about to launch European empire out of London. (The Times)

SG Hambros has opened an office in Manchester and hired someone (from Kleinwort Benson) to work there. (Wealth Bulletin)

Unemployed college grads will work on your farm for free. (Clusterstock)

Senior trader at Morgan Stanley guilty of ‘deliberately disadvantaging’ customers. (Telegraph)

Ex-traders in the US are becoming teachers. (CNN)

Free Viagra for the unemployed. (New Scientist)