The CEOs for the three biggest banks in Singapore saw pay cuts ranging from 8.2% to 24.3% for the FY2020 ended December, in tandem with lower earnings reported for the period amidst the Covid-19 environment.
While base salaries for the CEOs of DBS Group Holdings, Overseas-Chinese Banking Corporation (OCBC), and United Overseas Bank (UOB) remained flat, their respective total remunerations were lower due to cuts in bonuses, share awards, and other benefits.
Piyush Gupta, CEO of DBS, saw the biggest pay cut with his total remuneration reduced by $2.94 million or 24.3% to $9.18 million for the FY2020, compared to $12.13 million in the FY2019.
Excluding his base salary of $1.2 million, Gupta saw his cash bonus, shares awarded, and other remuneration lowered by $1.2 million, $1.8 million, and $14,412 respectively. The reduction was attributed to the “difficult operating environment”, general cutbacks adopted across the bank, and the reduction in the bank's profits, which fell by $1.67 billion or 26% y-o-y to $4.72 billion.
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OCBC Bank’s Samuel Tsien, who will be retiring from his role as executive director and CEO on April 15, saw his total remuneration reduced by $2.45 million or 22.1% to $8.63 million for the FY2020, compared to $11.08 million previously.
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Apart from his base salary of $1.24 million, Tsien’s bonus, deferred shares, and other benefits were reduced by $1.46 million, $0.97 million, and $17,458 respectively. OCBC’s earnings for the FY2020 fell $1.28 billion or 26% y-o-y to $3.59 billion.
United Overseas Bank (UOB) CEO Wee Ee Cheong saw the smallest pay cut, with his total remuneration lowered by $0.95 million or 8.8% to $9.81 million for the FY2020, from $10.75 million the year before. UOB’s earnings for the period fell $1.43 billion or 33% y-o-y to $2.92 billion.
Excluding his base salary of $1.2 million, Wee saw his bonus reduced by $0.95 million, though his benefits-in-kind, which includes transport benefits and the provision of a driver, marginally increased by approximately $5,000.
As at 4.52pm, shares in DBS, OCBC and UOB are trading at $29.31, $11.81 and $25.95 respectively.
