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Dubai’s new pay advantage
With tax clampdowns and hard-nosed regulatory proposals in Western markets, financial services salaries in the Middle East now look like a tempting carrot to sway talent to the region. And the regulator has promised maintain a light-touched approach to pay. The Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) said it will not be regulating salaries or variable [...]
League table of banking pay: 2008
Wondering why all those people are leaving big houses for boutiques? Here’s the answer… 1. Greenhill & Co.: Average total comp per head: $477k Headcount: 214 (Dec. ’08) Total compensation expenditure 2008: $102m 2. Lazard Average total comp per head: $456k Headcount: 2,474 (Sept. 30th ’08) Total compensation expenditure 2008: $1.1bn 3. Evercore Average total [...]
Bonuses down least in Dubai, most in London and NY
Not entirely surprisingly, bankers in London and New York are expected to suffer more than those elsewhere come bonus time. International financial services headhunter Options Group is predicting a 45-50% reduction in payouts in the two cities, while Dubai bankers will apparently see their pay chopped by only 10-15%. Asia Pac staff are expected to [...]
Regional banks double pay to compete with bulge-bracket firms
Expansion is the name of the game for regional banks in the GCC. They are increasing headcount and salaries so rapidly it’s even affecting their bottom line. The latest round of quarterly reporting makes for interesting reading, and not just because of the often double-digit increases in profits. In most cases, they are spending around [...]
Pay pain for banks in the GCC
Pay in the Middle East is spiralling. It now makes up almost 60% of banks’ operating costs. A survey by consultancy Hewitt Associates suggests salaries in Oman and Qatar lead the way when it comes to eating into banks’ profits. But pay across the Middle East banking sector is becoming a problem – particularly when [...]
The stock shock
Rules forbidding the issue of stock options to expats in the Middle East are a major deterrent to foreign talent, so are banks offering any alternatives? The concept of Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs) is a standard part of compensation packages in developed financial markets like the UK and US, but laws in the Gulf [...]
Do locals deserve to earn more?
Banks are splashing the cash on locals as they struggle to meet nationalization targets within a limited talent pool. But what do they really think about this? The government in the UAE has decreed that in all firms 40% of employees should be locals, which is no mean feat when you consider that only 20% [...]
Time to dump the dollar?
Will a tumbling dollar spur the GCC countries to come good on their promise of a single currency for 2010 and what will this mean for pay? The meeting of the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) this month had traders speculating on a possible de-pegging from the weak dollar, which is spurring high inflation within the [...]
Are bigger bonuses really on the way?
Our survey suggests Gulf bankers are an optimistic bunch. Just when we accuse you of being a cynical bunch, financial services workers in the Gulf emerge as among the most optimistic in the world. The results of eFinancial Careers.com‘s survey are in, and amid the global doom and gloom surrounding the credit markets an overwhelmingly [...]
Double-digit pay rises for Gulf bankers
The rising cost of living and strong demand for specialist skills are forcing banking pay up by as much as 40% a year. “Demand for investment bankers, structured finance professionals, and client relationship managers has driven the dramatic increase in compensation over the last three years,” says Alex Cormack, director and head of Middle East [...]
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