NEW YORK (AP) — The average Wall Street bonus decreased slightly last year to $176,500 as the industry added employees and adopted a more careful method for compensation, New York state’s comptroller stated Tuesday.
The mean bonus for workers in New York City’s securities field dropped 2% from $180,000 in 2022. The small decrease occurred even though Wall Street profits increased by 1.8% last year, based on the annual estimate from Thomas DiNapoli, the state’s comptroller.
DiNapoli’s office mentioned the small decline could be attributed to the approach to compensation as more employees entered the securities field.
Last year, the industry hired 198,500 individuals in New York City, which was higher than 191,600 in 2022.
For 2023, the bonus pool was $33.8 billion, which remains mostly unchanged from the previous year.
The average Wall Street bonus reached a record high of $240,400 in 2021, compared to a relatively low of $111,400 in 2011.
Wall Street is a significant source of state and city tax income, constituting an estimated 27% of New York state’s tax collections and 7% of collections for the city, according to the comptroller.
“While these bonuses impact income tax revenues for the state and city, both anticipated larger declines so the impact on expected revenues should be limited,” DiNapoli said in a prepared statement. “The securities industry’s sustained strength should not overshadow the broader economic situation in New York, where we need all sectors to achieve complete recovery from the pandemic.”
