Why bankers should take their bonuses

So, another day, another bonus waived by a bank chief executive. 

Eric Daniels of Lloyds Banking Group has let it be known that he won’t take his bonus, despite his board feeling that the payment was deserved.

In the current climate, this tiny club of well-paid bankers in the upper echelons of their sector are probably well advised to make this kind of grand gesture.   And yes, they got the news headlines this evening so perhaps there are congratulatory toasts being had in the city of London tonight.

And yet I can’t help thinking that there would be more mileage – and news coverage – if a CEO was to take their bonus, but then announce that he was giving it all away to charity.  Think of the impact £2.3m could make to a range of his pet causes, and also think of the amount of Gift Aid that could be claimed on top.

So rather than the knee-jerk reaction to bankers that prevails in the media, let’s encourage them to take the bonuses and, literally, make good with it.