Is Stephen Hester overpaid?
Stephen Hester, the government appointed chief executive of Royal Bank of Scotland, is taking part in a Commons enquiry into the UK banking sector and in particular bonuses paid by Royal Bank of Scotland and Northern Rock. During his input to the enquiry Stephen Hester has admitted that his parents think his package at Royal Bank of Scotland is over the top and he is overpaid.
However, while Stephen Hester stands on the brink of a potential £10 million bonus package, if the Royal Bank of Scotland share price recovers in the future, in reality he will not be taking any cash in year one and indeed his share options are worthless at the moment. While this may be something of a red herring when you bear in mind that any potential recovery in the UK economy would almost inevitably involve a strong recovery in banking shares, it does open an interesting debate on share options and share bonuses.
If Stephen Hester is able to cash in his potential £10 million share bonus in the future then Royal Bank of Scotland shareholders who acquired shares over the last few months will also have benefited. The increase in the overall value of the company would dwarf his potential bonus package.
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