Macquarie boss Nicholas Moore earned $20m last year

Macquarie CEO Nicholas Moore’s earnings last year of nearly $20m make him the best paid boss in Australia.

Macquarie CEO Nicholas Moore. Pic: John Feder

Macquarie Group chief executive Nicholas Moore last year earned nearly $20 million, making him the best paid boss in Australia.

The bank’s annual report, published today, showed Mr Moore’s remuneration in 2018 reached $19.6 million, up from $18.7 million one year earlier.

The level of pay he received was 248 times the average wage in Australia, which stands at $78,832.

A breakdown of Mr Moore’s pay packet shows he was paid $4.43 million in cash for the past year and then shares in Macquarie worth nearly $13 million.

Mr Moore owns 2.31 million shares in Macquarie worth $247 million.

He has worked for Macquarie for nearly 30 years and is renowned for having never sold a share in the bank in that time.

Mr Moore’s executive colleagues at the bank are also among the highest paid bosses in Australia.

Macquarie Asset Management head Shemara Wikramanayake earned $18.89 million last year, which was up from $17.33 million one year earlier. The division of the bank she heads is the profitable part of the business.

Macquarie Asset Management’s Shemara Wikramanayake. Pic: James Croucher

Macquarie’s co-head of corporate and asset finance Ben Brazil, who is tipped as a potential replacement for Mr Moore in the future, earned $16.9 million. The bank’s head of commodities and global markets Andrew Downe earned $15.2 million.