£1.1m bonus for Barclays bank boss as forex scandal mars profits

Barclays bank boss Antony Jenkins has accepted his first annual bonus since taking over but a rise in underlying profits was marred by a fresh £750m hit from the foreign exchange (forex) rate-rigging scandal.

Mr Jenkins took a £1.1m bonus for 2014 after declining the payout in the last two years, taking his total annual package, including long-term and other awards, to £5.5m. The payout may prove controversial after a year in which Barclays has slashed 14,000 jobs — with another 5,000 to go by 2016 —and closed a net 72 branches.

Mr Jenkins said the bank was now stronger than at any time since the financial crisis as it announced a 12% rise in adjusted pre-tax profits to a better-than-expected £5.5bn. But he said the forex scandal continued to “cast a shadow” over the business, though he hoped there would be steps towards resolving it this year.