Several domestic banks are recovering bonuses from employees, with Bank of China recovering approximately 47 million yuan last year

According to a report by the South China Morning Post, several major banks in mainland China are reclaiming bonuses from employees and even implementing salary cuts amid a sluggish economic recovery and Beijing's ongoing tightening of regulations on the financial industry. These banks disclosed the total amount of performance compensation reclaimed from employees in their annual reports. Among them, Bank of China (03988.HK) reclaimed a total of RMB 47.18 million from 4,630 employees last year; in comparison, in 2024, the bank only reclaimed RMB 32.5 million from about 2,500 employees.

Additionally, CBHB reclaimed RMB 19.58 million in bonuses from 816 employees last year; ZYBANK reported reclaiming RMB 13.57 million but did not disclose the number of affected employees. Furthermore, several banks, including China Construction Bank (00939.HK) and China Huaxia Bank (600015.SH), have also made related disclosures.

The report indicates that this move reflects the authorities' efforts to reduce the wealth gap under the "common prosperity" policy that has been promoted in Beijing for years, while also curbing the extravagance in the financial industry amid ongoing downward pressure on the Chinese economy