News station NFS reports that the monthly salaries of banking CEOs are skyrocketing. Halldór J. Kristjánsson, one of two CEOs of Landsbanki received ISK 12.4 million per month last year (including options). Sigurjón Th. Árnason, the other CEO of Landsbanki, received ISK 6.9 million per month. According to Landbanki’s annual report the senior management of the bank received salaries and other compensation of up to ISK 840 million. Sixteen directors at the bank received over ISK 3 million in salary per month, totaling ISK 598 million last year.
Hreidar Már Sigurdsson CEO of KB bank was the best paid Icelandic bank CEO last year with more than ISK 8 million per month.
According to NFS, the salaries of Icelandic bank CEOs increased 60% between 2003 and 2004.
NFS also reported that between 7-800 bank employees were paid less than ISK 210,000 per month for a full day’s work. In total, there are about 4,000 bank employees in Iceland. Fridbert Traustason the president of the Association of Icelandic Bankers said that the average wage is ISK 500,000. He said that the pay discrepancy was enormous and that the salaries of the senior management were unfathomable for all normal people.
Lars G. Nordström the lead CEO for Nordea, a bank with about 10 times as many employees as the entire Icelandic banking system received about half of what Halldór Kristjánsson, CEO of Landsbanki received, or about ISK 80 million in salary for the whole year of 2004.
