RBS paid £20m to top 5 bankers

The Royal Bank of Scotland's top five bankers, none of whom are on the board, earned more than £20m in 2010, it was revealed yesterday. RBS was bailed out by the government during the financial crisis.

The news was a result of Project Merlin, an agreement to increase transparency, which was signed by the UK's four biggest banks and announced by the chancellor last month. HSBC had been the first to comply with the agreement by revealing that five of their bankers took home between £2.1m and £2.7m in 2010.

In line with new FSA regulations, RBS also revealed how much their 'code staff' – those deemed crucial to business operations – were paid. The 232 staff members deemed to fit these criteria were paid £1.1m on average in 2010, costing the bank a total of £375m.

"This proves Sir Philip Hampton's point that far too many mediocre people get big bonuses," said Liberal Democrat peer Lord Oakeshott. "Why on earth do taxpayers need to pay hundreds of middle-ranker bankers over a million pounds at RBS?"

Read a full report at the Guardian. ·