US Finance Jobs See Large Salary Increase

Last year, investment banks, private equity firms, and hedge funds rewrote the dealmaking record book. Deal volume, industry profits, and CEO bonuses all reached new heights.

Now the money is trickling down through the ranks of the financial-services industry. Bonuses, which were set last December, are typically paid out during January, February, and March. At many firms such as Goldman Sachs Group everyone from the secretary to the most senior partner is eligible to partake in the record payout. Goldman Chief Executive Lloyd Blankfein received a bonus of $53 million, a securities industry record. The average payout at Goldman was about $622,000.

The money is flooding into New York City, where financial services account for 5% of the jobs but 20% of total pay. Citywide, compensation in the financial-services sector hit a record $23.9 billion, up 17% from $20.5 billion in 2005, according to state officials. The average bonus in New York City's financial-services sector was $138,000, according to the New York state comptroller's office.