UBS delays its global bonus announcement
THOUSANDS of UBS employees will have to wait an extra week to receive their bonuses, according to an internal memo that a spokesperson confirmed to City A.M. last night.
UBS has delayed most of its bonus announcements and promotion decisions in what it said was a drive “to ensure high quality execution of the payment process” and to make sure that regulatory changes have been accounted for in every country.
American staff will now learn the size of their bonuses on 16 February, rather than 9 February as planned, with payments to be made in early to mid-March. It is thought that employees in the UK will hear about their bonuses at the end of the month as originally planned.
The Swiss bank declined to comment on reports that the bonus pool was being modified due to fears that the pending payouts will be insufficient to retain its top bankers.
UBS is due to report its fourth-quarter and full-year results next Tuesday, with analysts predicting quarterly net profits of up to Swfr1.5bn (£983m).
The bank scaled back bonuses for senior staff last year after it missed internal profit targets, following criticism from Swiss regulators.