The average Wall Street bonus rose 17 percent to $184,220 in 2017, according to a report released on Monday by New York state’s chief fiscal officer.
Experts say the bonuses were fueled by the surge in profits and the new tax bill that passed before the new year.
The securities industry averaged 176,900 jobs in New York City last year, down slightly after three straight years of gains.
But the increase in bonuses were some of the highest the industry has seen since before the financial crisis in 2007.
The average Wall Street bonus rose 17 percent to $184,220 in 2017, according to a report released on Monday. This is the highest the bonuses have been since the financial crisis of 2007
It’s all-time high for the average Wall Street bonus was in 2006 when it reached $191,360.
Experts warn that while employees should take this as a good sign for a booming economy, it could also hint at future financial trouble like what happened after the bonuses in 2006.
‘When I woke up this morning, it was a bit stunning to see this 17 percent increase,’ said Sarah Anderson, Global Economy Project Director at the left-leaning Institute for Policy Studies, to CBS News.
‘It’s more worrisome seeing these numbers going to folks on Wall Street — it’s a sign that we didn’t learn that much from the financial crisis.’
Employment in the industry, a key component of the city’s economy, remains six percent smaller than before the financial crisis in 2007.
Profits for the broker-dealer operations of New York Stock Exchange member firms meanwhile jumped 42 percent to $24.5 billion, the highest level since 2010, driven by growth in wealth management fees, underwriting and M&A advisory fees, the report said.
‘It is too soon to tell how increased volatility in the financial markets might impact profits in 2018,’ New York state Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli said in the report.
The report is based on tax withholding data and does not include stock options or other forms of deferred compensation.