Macquarie CEO Nicholas Moore Australia’s highest paid boss at $20m

Chairman Peter Warne has defended the remuneration structure which saw executives enjoy a pay bonanza last year.

Macquarie Bank chief executive Nicholas Moore. Picture: AAP

Macquarie Group chairman Peter Warne has defended the investment bank’s remuneration structure which helped chief executive Nicholas Moore earn nearly $20 million last year, making him the best paid boss in Australia.

The bank’s annual report published yesterday showed Mr Moore’s remuneration in 2018 reached $19.6m, up from $18.7m 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 $4.43m in cash for the past year and then shares in Macquarie worth nearly $13m. Mr Moore owns 2.31 million shares in Macquarie worth $247m.

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

Mr Warne defended the bank’s remuneration structure and said it was designed to make executive pay tie closely to the bank’s profit and share price performance.

About 80 per cent of Mr Moore’s pay is made up of short-term shares and preference shares that vest in three to seven years.

“Macquarie’s remuneration framework is a very longstanding framework, and essentially the format has been unchanged for decades,” Mr Warne said.

“It’s based on the fundamental principle that it’s a long-term partnership between staff and shareholders.

“There is an incredibly strong alignment between our staff and shareholders and in our belief that encourages our staff to deliver good outcomes for our customer … that means good results for our shareholders and staff.”

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

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

Macquarie’s co-head of corporate and asset finance, Ben Brazil, who is tipped as a potential replacement for Mr Moore, earned $16.9m.

The bank’s head of commodities and global markets, Andrew Downe, earned $15.2m.

The pay rises delivered across the bank came as Macquarie’s share price hit a record high yesterday of $108.11. In the past year it has rallied from $94.89 to the current level, after hitting a low $83.18 in June last year.

Mr Warne said shareholders had consistently backed the investment bank’s pay policy because of its close links to the share price and profit.

“We believe the remuneration framework has been instrumental in driving the success of the firm over a very long period of time,” he said.

“It’s for the benefit of the company and that is recognised by our shareholders.”