HONG KONG/BEIJING, June 5 (Reuters) - China's CITIC Securities is cutting pay across its investment banking division, lowering base salaries by up to 15%, two sources said, in a rare move in the country's financial sector as Beijing pushes to bridge income disparity.
The country's top investment bank by market value has also yet to pay bonuses to bankers for work done last year, the two sources close to the matter said.
China's well-heeled financial dealmakers over the past year have been getting a crash course in austerity with pay cuts and perks reined in as their state-owned employers respond to the "common prosperity" drive.
CITIC Securities' domestic rival China International Capital Corp (CICC) (3908.HK) last month cut this year's bonuses for investment bankers by 30%-50% from a year earlier, said two separate sources with knowledge of the matter.
Besides remuneration cuts, some investment banks have asked staff to avoid displays of wealth such as uploading photographs to social media of expensive meals or overseas trips, industry sources have said.
Persons:
China's, CICC, Julie Zhu, Selena Li, Roxanne Liu, Louise Heavens, Kirsten Donovan
Organizations:
CITIC Securities, China International Capital Corp, HK, Reuters, China's, Thomson
Locations:
HONG KONG, BEIJING, Beijing, China, CICC, Hong Kong