UBS makes Ermotti Europe's best-paid bank boss with $16 mln package

Ermotti earned $15.9 mln in 2023

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Overall bonus pool shrinks at Swiss bank

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UBS says Ermotti could stay beyond Credit Suisse integration

ZURICH, March 28 (Reuters) - UBS Chief Executive Sergio Ermotti earned 14.4 million Swiss francs ($15.90 million) in 2023, making him the best paid European bank boss last year.

UBS reported Ermotti's pay in its annual report on Thursday, with the Swiss bank also saying it had shrunk the overall employee bonus pool last year.

Ermotti returned to lead UBS on April 5 after it acquired Credit Suisse in an emergency takeover and is still in the process of navigating the wealth manager through the tricky integration of its former rival.

"Sergio has committed to stay at least until the completion of the integration process, if not longer," the annual report said.

UBS also said that findings drawn up by Swiss authorities looking into the 2023 collapse of Credit Suisse could result in more stringent regulation in future.

The bank is still reviewing potential mis-statements in Credit Suisse's financial reports and talks with regulators to address the issue are ongoing, UBS said

"UBS expects to adopt and implement further controls and procedures following the completion of such review and discussions with regulators," it said.

The Ermotti pay package, meanwhile, makes him one of the best-paid executives among Swiss-listed companies but he was still behind Novartis boss Vas Narasimhan, who took home more than 16 million francs.

Among bank CEOs, his pay topped that of HSBC Noel Quinn ($10.6 million) and Santander executive chair Ana Botin (12.24 million euros), according to the banks.

In total, UBS executives received compensation of 140.3 million francs in 2023, up from 106.9 million francs in 2022. But overall bonuses fell 14% to $4.5 billion, the majority of which was paid in cash.

Ermotti's predecessor as CEO, Ralph Hamers, earned 12.6 million francs in 2022. ($1 = 0.9059 Swiss francs) (Reporting by Noele Illien Additional reporting by Stefania Spezzati Editing by Tommy Reggiori Wilkes and David Goodman)