Bonus time at Babcock

Babcock and Brown is not just the fastest growing investment bank in the country ñ itís also emerging as one of the best paying.

Sydney-based ëBandBí has confirmed its status as the new ìmillionaires factoryî by revealing that its 1,019 employees shares wages and bonuses totaling $662m in calendar 2006.

That equates to around AU$650k per employee ñ and that includes secretaries and junior staffers. If you take into account that nearly one third of these employees were hired during the year ñ and the average staff count over 2006 was around 850, then the average pay check for full time employees was around AU$780k for the year.

The good news for anyone aspiring to work there, is that while Babcock CEO Phil Green says staff numbers shot up 59% in the last year, he still expects numbers to grow sharply again in 2007. ìI expect staff numbers will grow at least 30%,î he says, which would mean another 300 employees by yearís end.

Many of these positions will come in the UK, US and Europe, where staff numbers grew 72%, 70% and 50% respectively in 2006 as new offices were opened and the firmís total funds under management doubled to more than AU$44bn.

But be warned. Babcock and Brown demands high performance from its employees, and this is reflected in their bonus structure, which in 2006 accounted for more than two thirds ñ or A$444m ñ of total salaries. Their base pay is much more prosaic ñ averaging out at AU$220k per employee.

Still, the investment bank is rewarded with unfailing loyalty. Staff turnover at most other investment banks averages between 8% and 15%. Asked about staff turnover at Babcock and Brown, Green says: ìItís negligible. I think we lost maybe 10 people at most last year.î