Banker breaks ranks with City colleagues to attack fat cats

Mervyn Davies, chairman of London-based Standard Chartered, called for an end to 'rewards for excessive risk taking'. 

There has been huge anger among investors in banks at the large pay and bonuses still being earned by leading bankers at a time when many have seen their stock market investments dwindle to almost nothing. 

Mervyn Davies: Called for an end to 'rewards for excessive risk taking'

Almost £100billion has been wiped off the stock market value of British banks since the credit crunch struck on August 9 last year.

Mr Davies's comments about City pay echo those of Hector Sants, head of the financial watchdog, who has called for a crackdown on the bonus culture which encourages bankers to take huge risks with investors' cash.

His words carry extra weight as his bank, which has large interests in the Middle East, Africa and Asia, is one of the few British institutions to have weathered the credit crunch. 

As chairman of Standard Chartered he earned £660,000 last year, a similar sum to the chairman of Barclays, Marcus Agius.

Mr Davies, who was chief executive for six years before stepping up to chairman, is widely credited with turning Standard Chartered into the best-run UK-controlled bank. Its shares have outperformed rivals by 46 per cent this year.

In his last full year as chief executive he took home £2.2million.

This compares with the £21million pay of Bob Diamond, the president of Barclays, the highest-paid director on a British bank board.