Saving money at banks: Cap all salaries at $400,000


Sen. Claire McCaskill has come up with a novel way to cut compensation on Wall Street. The government should force a cap on the salary of every employee at firms that take TARP money. The upper limit would be $400,000. Not just the CEOs and top managers -- everyone. That would include the most elite bankers and traders who often make their firms hundreds of millions of dollars.

If the plan goes through, and that is a big if, it could measurably improve profit margins at big investment banks like Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) and Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS). It could also force a lot of the best talent out the door.

But, where will the best talent go? It used to be that great traders could go to hedge funds, but many hedge funds are in more trouble than the banks. Some investment bankers have started their own boutique operations, but there may not be enough M&A and corporate advisory work to support a number of smaller firms.

McCaskill's program is radical, but in some form, it might actually work. And that would make Wall Street more profitable.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 24/7 Wall St.

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