Swiss Bank UBS To Take Back Some Bonuses

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STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

The big Swiss bank UBS awarded some of its investment bankers millions of dollars in bonuses for their work last year. Now, according to The Wall Street Journal, it's taking some of that money back.

RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

Or clawing it back. That's our last word in business today. Claw back provisions implemented after the financial crisis allow banks to recover bonuses from employees. A trading scandal last year cost UBS more than $2 billion and pushed it into the red.

INSKEEP: The bank's board of directors decided to take back half of stock-based bonuses awarded last year, if the bonuses exceeded $2 million. So $1.9 million, that's OK. That's the biggest claw back to date, according to The Journal. Other banks have also been trying to rain in compensation.

MONTAGNE: Morgan Stanley plans to limit the cash portion of its bonuses to $125,000. And Deutsche Bank is capping this year's bonus payments at $265,000.

And that's the business news from MORNING EDITION on NPR News. I'm Renee Montagne.

INSKEEP: And I'm Steve Inskeep.

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