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Bankers’ bonuses are to be capped at two times salary and banks will be subject to a strict transparency regime, under a provisional EU deal that includes minimal concessions to cushion the most severe pay crackdown since the 2008 financial crisis,reports the Financial Times.
In a serious setback for the UK’s fight to head-off some of the remuneration curbs, the European parliament late on Wednesday night secured agreement on a mandatory 1:1 ratio on salary relative to variable pay, which can rise to 2:1 with explicit shareholder approval.
Apple’s Cook faces angry investors
The head of Apple, who is facing a shareholder rebellion over his pay, has acknowledged the widespread disappointment in the company’s sagging share price at its annual shareholders’ meeting at Cupertino in California, reports The Guardian.
“I don’t like it either,” Tim Cook told them. He is facing a revolt among shareholders over a 51% rise in his basic salary to $1.4m (£923,000). According to the Financial Times, more than a third of investors have vote against the increase.
RBS posts £5.2bn loss in ‘chastening year’
The Royal Bank of Scotland has reported a fifth consecutive pre-tax loss of £5.2bn in 2012, but stripping out mis-selling and accounting charges the bank’s underlying business has improved, reports the Telegraph.
Operating profits were £3.46bn in 2012, up from £1.82bn the previous year – the highest since its bail-out in 2008.
Slovenia Leader Is Ousted
Slovenia’s prime minister became the latest casualty of European public anger at austerity measures and alleged government corruption, as the recession-hit nation’s Parliament ousted him in a no-confidence vote late Wednesday, reports the Wall Street Journal online.
Lawmakers in the 90-seat legislature voted 55-33 to name Alenka Bratusek, the head of the largest opposition party, as interim prime minister to succeed Janez Jansa, who had been clinging to office for weeks after members of his coalition defected, leaving him as head of a minority government. She will be the country’s first female premier.
Carnage on the high street as one shop gives up every hour
The steady rate of high street closures turned into a torrent last year, according to new figures revealing the toll that the financial crisis has taken on town centres, reports The Times.
Modest growth in the number of independent stores was not sufficient to counter the steps being taken by big retailers to close stores or move out of town. Research on Britain’s top 500 town centres by PwC, the accountancy firm, and the Local Data Company shows that last year companies shut 1,800 more shops than they opened, compared with 174 net closures in 2011.
