Santander bosses take pay cut on Spanish property troubles
SPANISH bank Santander slashed bosses bonuses by one-third yesterday after profits slumped, and froze the directors’ salaries at 2009 levels.
Long-serving chairman Emilio Botin took a 32 per cent cut, earning just over €3m (£2.6m) – though €1.4m of that is in shares, much of which are deferred.
Profits at Spain’s largest lender fell 59 per cent on the year and as a result directors’ pay has been chopped back by almost 35 per cent as a result.
Spain’s banking industry has been crippled by the country’s property downturn, and although Santander is one of the strongest banks and one of the few that does not need a bailout, it has still been affected by the housing bust.
Chief executive Alfredo Saenz received €8.24m for 2012, down almost a third on the year.
And Ana Botin, chief of the bank’s UK arm, saw her pay rise 2.6 per cent to €5.14m making her the only boss to record an increase in compensation for the year.
The group’s shares fell 1.81 per cent on the day.