FT: Barnier accused bankers of ‘blackmail’
14 December 2010
Bankers are indulging in “blackmail” by threatening to flee the City of London for more business-friendly locations in Asia over tough new caps on pay and bonuses, European Commissioner Michel Barnier has told UK MPs.
The man in charge of internal markets and services, in his first appearance before a committee of the British parliament on Monday, said he was “not overly impressed” at the idea that that financial institutions could leave such a financial heartland.
Mr Barnier was seeking to defend guidelines issued last week by the umbrella body for bank regulation that would limit cash bonuses at banks at as little as 20 per cent of total pay.
The proposals, by the Committee of European Banking Supervisors, have provoked a storm of opposition from banks, which have lobbied hard with warnings they could drive talent overseas.
© Financial Times
