COMPANIES “Indecent” bonuses, a focus on short-term gains and the demise of the partnership culture at investment banks helped fuel the financial crisis of the past 18 months, according to Sir John Craven, whose three-decade career in the City of London culminated as chairman of Deutsche Morgan Grenfell in the 1990s.
“Levels of compensation became indecently high and far too much of the compensation in parts of the industry – trading desks, and mergers and acquisitions – was geared towards low salaries and high-cost immediate bonuses,” he said. “That didn’t lead to sound long-term financial management.”
