[ by Melanie Gretchen and Howard Haykin ]

Some bankers are getting the royal treatment from their employer banks, notwithstanding the the dismal earnings reports, the scandals and regulatory investigations that have triggered monetary fines amounting to hundreds of millions, if not billions, of dollars. 

At a time when bankers might be expected to stand behind their employers and sacrifice for the greater good of all their associates, the opposite is happening.  Growing numbers of bankers are rising above the fray and collecting 7-figure compensation packages.  You name the bank - Royal Bank of Scotland, Barclays, HSBC - and hundreds of bankers continue to receive payouts amid criticism from outsiders.

Payout Breakdown. Here are what Britain's bankers made, despite widespread woes in the banking industry:

• RBS: The 82% government-owned bank for 2012 paid 93 of its employees more than £1 million, or $1.5 million, even though the bank reported a net loss of $1.5 billion, in contrast with a profit of $4.5 billion for 2011.

• Barclays, which paid $450 million in sanctions to settle Libor accusations from American and British authorities, still managed to pay 428 of its staff more than $1.5 million each in 2012.

• HSBC, having paid $1.9 billion in fines relating to money laundering violations and reporting a 17% drop in net profits for the year, managed to increase the number of staff members who received a million pounds or more - the 6% increase brought this year's total to 204 employees.  Guess it pays to deal with Mexican drug cartels and launder their tainted money through the American financial system;  same would go for Saudi Arabian banks linked to terrorist organizations.

On Friday, a labor union official in the U.K. called bank's payouts "obscene."  The European Union proposed to cap bonuses at no more than the annual salary for the region’s bankers.  For its part, the British government said doing so would could prompt an exodus of talent and raise fixed salaries.

Clawbacks. In all fairness, RBS clawed back 453 million in current and future bonuses, what the bank paid U.S. and U.K. authorities over allegations it manipulated Libor.  At Barclays, CEO Antony Jenkins clawed back $450 million of deferred bonuses and will introduce a new system, whereby staff pay will be evaluated against a set of standards.

Mr. Jenkins said the bank could look at cutting down the firm's staff to 100,000 members from its current population of 140,000, to reduce costs and use more computer programs and technology.  [C-I Note: That would be a game changer.]  For now, the British bank paid 5 bankers more than $7.5 million last year.  At RBS, Mr. Hester, who declined a bonus for 2012, earned $2.4 million last year.

For his part, Mervyn A. King, the departing governor of the Bank of England, said that RBS could be looking at a split, to return ownership of the firm to the private sector.

"The whole idea of a bank being 82 percent owned by the taxpayer, run at arm’s length from the government, is a nonsense."

For further details, go to [Barclays, 3/8/13].