Bonuses Seen Falling for Macro Traders in Letdown From 2016
- Bond, equities personnel may see pay fall after revenue slump
- Letdown a stark reminder of hyperactive 2016 environment
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Three Fed rate hikes, two major European elections and the sharpest strengthening in China’s currency since 2008 would normally make for a busy year for macro traders, leaving them optimistic come bonus time. Not this year.
Investors haven’t found much to compel them to step up bets on the directions of interest rates and currencies in 2017, driving sharp drops in revenue at the Wall Street trading desks that serve them. At Bank of America Corp., rates traders are likely to see a slump of more than 10 percent in their bonus pool, according to people briefed on the discussions. Those teams at JPMorgan Chase & Co., the world’s biggest trading bank, are set for declines of about 5 percent, said people familiar with the figures.