Bank of America Corp. is divvying up a roughly $1 billion pool of restricted stock among the majority of its staff, lifting compensation to retain employees as the lender seeks to boost earnings while keeping a lid on expenses.
The incentive, which comes on top of regular compensation, will go to workers who earn as much as $500,000 in total annual pay, according to a memo Friday from Chief Executive Officer Brian Moynihan. About 97% of the bank’s global workforce is eligible.
This is the eighth time the Charlotte, North Carolina-based company has paid such awards, which total more than $5.8 billion since the program started in 2017, according to the memo. A bank spokesperson confirmed the contents of the memo.
“It was another strong year for our company as we continued to drive growth and deliver for our clients, as well as do the critical work to position us for long-term, sustainable success,” Moynihan said in the memo.
Bank of America this week reported $27.1 billion of net income last year, up 2.3% from 2023. The firm is focused on increasing its revenue while also investing in the franchise, spending more on people and technology, executives said on a conference call with analysts Thursday.
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Across Wall Street, the biggest US banks have been sweetening pay packages to retain their top talent, in the form of stock awards or cash bonuses. On Friday, Goldman announced it was giving CEO David Solomon and President John Waldron retention awards valued at $80 million each.
At Bank of America, outside of the stock, a limited number of employees will receive a cash bonus based on compensation and local requirements, according to the memo. Moynihan said the company would provide more information about specific award amounts to all eligible employees and their managers in the coming weeks.
A year ago, the bank similarly rewarded the majority of its employees with a pool of restricted stock. The firm also raised its minimum wage to $24 an hour in October, with a goal of paying $25 an hour this year.
