Soft Targets Fuel Executive Pay Confusion

The fallout from the Wells Fargo scandal, which has stripped the US bank’s chief executive of $US41 million in stock awards, has triggered a debate in the US on how quickly compensation can be clawed back from bank executives once a problem has been uncovered. Britain introduced laws last year to recover bonuses paid to bank executives up to 10 years later. US regulators are trying to get new laws approved before the presidential election that will defer compensation for executives. The debate around executive pay is ramping up in Australia, with many of the big listed companies holding annual general meetings over the next month, where shareholders get to vote on executive remuneration packages. While average chief executive salaries are falling, there are still huge problems with the executive remuneration system, which is complicated and lacks transparency.