By Olivia Scheck
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
MANHATTAN — The city's Wall Street workers took home less in cash bonuses last year, though their overall compensation actually grew, a report by New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli found.
The average cash bonus for securities industry employees who live within the five boroughs dropped to $128,530 in 2010, down 9 percent from the previous year, but overall they took home 6 percent more, according to the report.
The shift from cash bonuses to higher salaries and stock options coincided with popular outrage about Wall Street bonuses and the passage of last summer's financial reform bill.
DiNapoli lauded the development in a statement Wednesday, saying that it would help stabilize the industry.
"Past practices rewarded short-term gains at the expense of long-term profitability," the comptroller said. "A more stable and less volatile securities industry is in the best interests of Wall Street, the City and the State."
Overall, Wall Street enjoyed a banner year in 2010, with profits totaling $27.6 billion, according to the report. For brokers, it was the second most profitable year in the history of the New York Stock Exchange, behind 2009, when the industry was buoyed by federal bailouts and low interest rates, the comptroller's statement noted.
