Why bankers deserve bonuses

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Does my organisation subscribe? A surge in demand for loans, share issues, and deal making has left many in the City working every hour that god sends. That takes a toll. Banks have been struggling with burnout and staff churn at junior levels. Goldman Sachs analysts even put together a slide deck - of course - for their bosses complaining about hour weeks and inhuman conditions. All of this to say that this time around bankers deserve their bonuses.

ES Money. The Escapist. The Reveller. Do bankers deserve their bonuses? Maybe they're overpaid? Plenty of people would, and do, argue that this is the case. Personally, I think it's not that straightforward.

There's no question that those of us who work in finance are very fortunate. If you dropped a contemporary banker into a time machine and sent him or her back hundred years in time, they would be of almost no use whatsoever.

If you're reading this, you won the ovarian lottery: you were born in the 20th century under a late capitalist economic system. At another point in history, your role wouldn't have been possible. However, in this epoch bankers fulfill an important function by virtue of their position in the capitalist ecosystem.

In the context of this system, a banker who does his or her job correctly helps create value for others. You might be an equity capital markets banker , helping a company raise money by selling its stock. You might be a fixed income trader buying and selling corporate bonds and thereby maintaining liquidity in the fixed income market and keeping interest rates low. Bankers have an important place in the economic system. They are the facilitators.

And for this, they get paid handsomely. Bankers' bonuses should reflect the value they create for the clients they work with. The more value they create, the more they should be paid.