Pay for the leaders of Canada’s five largest banks rose an average of 28% as the lenders’ earnings increased and shares gained.
Total direct compensation for the chief executive officers climbed to a combined C$65.7 million ($51.2 million) for fiscal 2021, which ended Oct. 31. The bump for CEOs tops the 18% average increase in variable pay that the banks doled out to their workers last year — and the 6.3% gain in total compensation per employee over the period.
Royal Bank of Canada CEO Dave McKay had the largest pay package, at C$15.5 million. The bank, Canada’s largest by market value and revenue, had a 40% increase in income — to C$16.1 billion — during the year.
Net income for Canada’s five largest banks rose 39% to a combined C$54.5 billion in fiscal 2021.
Darryl White, the CEO of Bank of Montreal, had the biggest pay increase, at 37%. The lender’s shares climbed 69% during the 2021 fiscal year, the best performance in the eight-company S&P/TSX Commercial Banks Index, which rose 50%. The index is up 6.7% in the lenders’ current fiscal year, compared with a 1.3% gain for the broader S&P/TSX Composite Index.
