Barclays CEO C.S. Venkatakrishnan explained that to truly align employees’ efforts with shareholder interests, staff should share in the ultimate results of their work — reflected in the company’s share price. He emphasized that giving employees equity participation helps strengthen business performance.
Over the past year, Barclays’ stock price has more than doubled, boosted by a series of strategic moves aimed at increasing returns.
Looking ahead, the bank plans to link a larger portion of senior executives’ pay to performance. This shift comes as the U.K. relaxes rules, allowing banks to allocate more of total compensation through variable performance-based awards.
As part of these changes, Venkatakrishnan’s fixed salary will be reduced by 46%, bringing it down to about £1.6 million. However, his potential bonus will rise to 2.5 times his base salary, compared to the previous cap of 2 times. Barclays said the adjustments are intended to make his pay more competitive with industry peers, after lagging behind in recent years.
