What’s Driving Banks’ Low Say-on-Pay Vote Tallies

A handful of U.S. banks are facing heightened shareholder dissatisfaction over executive pay, pressuring them either to further defend their compensation programs or make changes.

Banks that receive dwindling support will want to get to work on talking to investors and making the case that what they pay their CEO and the rest of the C-suite is worth it, Alan Johnson, managing director at Johnson Associates, a compensation consulting firm that works with some of the nation’s largest banks, told American Banker. And they should move fast or risk losing more support next year, he added.

“You’re going to take a really serious look at your program, especially if you’ve failed the vote or gotten really close, and you’re going to have to make some changes,” Johnson said. The reason for the lower support is sometimes “pretty straightforward, and sometimes it’s more arbitrary,” he said.

American Banker / May 2, 2025