Wall Street Bonuses

Wall Street bonuses top $20bn

• Huge payouts will be a 'bitter pill' for many
• Investment banks on track to make $55bn profit for 2009

Total Wall Street bonuses since 1985 (pdf)

The average taxable Wall Street bonus was $123,850, said New York's state comptroller, Thomas DiNapoli Photograph: Stan Honda/AFP/Getty Images

Despite calls for restraint in multi-million dollar pay packages, Wall Street bonuses jumped by 17% to $20.3bn (£13bn) for 2009 as America's financial services industry rebounded swiftly from the credit crunch to healthy profitability, according to New York's tax department.