RJ and Makay

Year-end bonus payouts at investment firms are estimated to increase slightly overall, according to a quarterly update on financial services compensation released by Johnson Associates. The outlook is not as positive as it was three months ago, but Johnson forecasts that even investment bankers might make about the same as in 2009, regardless of the weak volume of deals.

A “small increase” in year-end payouts is estimated for most of the industry, with the exception of equity and fixed-income trading desks, which are expected to see declines, compared to the large bonuses earned in 2009.

Industry-wide, Johnson forecasts that the average bonus per employee will still be approximately 20% less than the peak that sell-side firms experienced in 2007 and over 25% under 2007’s level for buy-side firms.