CHICAGO (NewsNation) — Jamie Dimon was apparently seen as a poor investment, as JPMorgan Chase & Co. investors rejected a bonus plan for the well-known CEO.
Just 31% of company investors voted in favor of Dimon’s massive compensation plan.
The proposal included stock options worth an estimated $52.6 million — a package designed to keep him in control of the company for another five years.
This is the first time since 2009 that the bank’s board lost such a vote, and although the shareholders’ decision is nonbinding, the board says it takes feedback seriously.
Four American banks hold more than $1.5 trillion in assets. JPMorgan Chase is the biggest such institution, followed by Bank of America, Wells Fargo, and Citigroup.
Even without the one-time bonus, Dimon was already the most handsomely compensated CEO of the group — taking home more than $34.5 million last year.
His contemporaries, Brian Moynihan of Bank of America and Charlie Scharf of Citigroup, are right behind. Jane Frazer took over as CEO of Citigroup in late February of last year.
The board’s disapproval of Dimon more than doubling his effective salary year-over-year comes as JPMorgan Chase’s stock flounders. The stock is down more than 25% this year, and is one of the worst-performing in the banking sector.
The mood of the big bank investors may have shifted over the last few months due to the economic downturn, because just last October, 82% of Goldman Sachs shareholders voted in favor of a $30 million retention bonus for its CEO, David Soloman.
The answer lies on Wall Street: Considering the Dow has dropped 800 points in a day five times in the last month, it makes sense that investors are being a little more scrutinizing about paying massive bonuses to executives while their customers are struggling to pay the bills.