EU leaders call on G20 to limit bankers' bonuses

European Union (EU) leaders called on Thursday for global rules to limit bankers' bonuses, a key demand to be presented at the upcoming summit of the Group of 20 (G20) major economies.

"On the financial market and bonuses, we have agreed to say enough is enough. We need to move away from the current culture of compensation based on short-term performance," Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt, whose country holds the EU rotating presidency, told a press conference after an EU informal summit.

"The bonus bubble burst tonight," he said. "The G20 plays a crucial role to globally regulate financial markets, not to see a return of the crisis."

In a conclusion document, EU leaders said the G20 should commit to agreeing to binding rules for financial institutions on bonuses to their top managers, backed up by the threat of sanctions at the national level.

In particular, bankers' bonuses should be set at an appropriate level made dependent on the performances of the financial institutions they managed.

Part of bankers' bonuses must be deferred over time for an appropriate period and could be canceled in case of a negative development in the bank's performance, EU leaders said.

Stock options must be prevented from being exercised for an appropriate period of time, they said.

EU leaders also wanted the G20 summit, which is to be held in the US city of Pittsburgh next week, to "explore ways to limit" bonuses to a certain proportion of either total pay or the bank's revenues or profits.

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