The Student Room Group

Do bankers pay a 45% tax?

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tax is a bugger :frown:



Original post by Lh030396
Bit sad to waste your teens and twenties slaving away to make a large amount of money for a short space of time.

You probably burn out by the time your in your early 30s and die of a heart attack at 35 as a result...


id say it's kinda fun in a mysterious weird, will always complain way.. i think the stories make it worthwhile.. and it gives you a sense of purpose.. but mostly complaining about how bad your life is is quite satisfying
(edited 7 years ago)
Original post by Patrick-Bateman
Totally agree. Don't understand how some people can take shots at those who choose different lifestyle choices. Work insanley hard and make loads of money as a banker. Or choose something else that you prefer. Just don't decide to start hating them just because they make more than you.


I think people hate them more for the *beep*ish attitudes they tend to display. A lot of them seem to be completely and utterly money obsessed as well, which is a very dangerous position to be in because whatever they earn will never be enough for them. One could easily lose a grip on reality where vast amounts of dosh start to mean nothing anymore.

Sure, I'd love to be a millionaire one day but I wouldn't want to get there through investment banking. The job sounds boring and stressful as hell!!! But that's just me...
Reply 122
Original post by Lh030396
I think people hate them more for the *beep*ish attitudes they tend to display. A lot of them seem to be completely and utterly money obsessed as well, which is a very dangerous position to be in because whatever they earn will never be enough for them. One could easily lose a grip on reality where vast amounts of dosh start to mean nothing anymore.

Sure, I'd love to be a millionaire one day but I wouldn't want to get there through investment banking. The job sounds boring and stressful as hell!!! But that's just me...


God forbid that some people go into the investment banking/sales and trading/research/tech/operations arena because they actually find the work interesting!

Actually scrap operations, the rest are interesting enough!
Original post by cbreef
Not at all. Human greed is really taking its toll on the world and it's getting out of hand. Seriously what do you with £500,000 every year?

A plain three bedroom house in my area (more expensive part of Silicon Valley) is over £2M. They're about £5+k per month to rent. You can feel poor on a salary that most people think is very high. London prices are nuts too, especially if you don't want a long commute.

If I were earning £500k, I'd live reasonably, pay for my childrens' education (~£50k each per year), and save to retire early.
Original post by RogerOxon
A plain three bedroom house in my area (more expensive part of Silicon Valley) is over £2M. They're about £5+k per month to rent. You can feel poor on a salary that most people think is very high. London prices are nuts too, especially if you don't want a long commute.

If I were earning £500k, I'd live reasonably, pay for my childrens' education (~£50k each per year), and save to retire early.


Fair enough, but why the f*ck do you live in Silicon valley? :rofl:
Would you give to any charities or help anyone?
Original post by Patrick-Bateman
hahaha that's a big leap mate. don't believe everything the left wing media spoon feeds you. Plenty of other causes which played a much larger role in the financial crisis. Read a book.


Is the BBC a left wing source to you too then?
£140,000 a year for working 7am-midnight (or whatever the crazy hours bankers work), including lots of weekend work, doesn't really seem worth it in the grand scheme of things...

Sure, £140k is a lot more than most people are getting, but it's by no means a huge amount of money... especially with the costs of living in London and the SE being astronomically high.

People on £30k may earn a minuscule amount in comparison to bankers, but these people tend to have better work-life balance, as well as leading healthier (both mentally and physically) lifestyles in general.

Whether you earn £30k or £100k pa, you're making money for the company you're working for first and foremost, and you're always going to be a little bit screwed over by these companies. It is the successful entrepreneurs and the CEOs that make the millions, not the people working for them...
You do also essentially 'sell' yourself to the bank. You are the bank's property for the time at which you work there. You do what the bank says, when the bank says. For this total devotion, you are rewarded. I have known several people who've gone to work for top investment banks and I have to say that they are deeply unhappy people. That sort of money is addictive to the type of person who wants to do investment banking and like all addictions, it's not necessarily where you want to be or what you want to be doing.

There's been some interesting replies to this. Given we live in a capitalist society, then people are perfectly free to earn astronomical amounts in the City and they're not necessarily 'evil' people for doing this, or wanting to do this. However, it doesn't exactly lead to a cohesive society where some flash city boys earn more in a day than most people do in a year.
(edited 7 years ago)
Original post by Lh030396
£140,000 a year for working 7am-midnight (or whatever the crazy hours bankers work), including lots of weekend work, doesn't really seem worth it in the grand scheme of things...

Sure, £140k is a lot more than most people are getting, but it's by no means a huge amount of money... especially with the costs of living in London and the SE being astronomically high.

People on £30k may earn a minuscule amount in comparison to bankers, but these people tend to have better work-life balance, as well as leading healthier (both mentally and physically) lifestyles in general.

Whether you earn £30k or £100k pa, you're making money for the company you're working for first and foremost, and you're always going to be a little bit screwed over by these companies. It is the successful entrepreneurs and the CEOs that make the millions, not the people working for them...


Yes, exactly. Hence why so many of them complain about it (hours, pay, tax, not good enough bonus) etc.

Posted from TSR Mobile
Original post by Commercial Paper
Yes, exactly. Hence why so many of them complain about it (hours, pay, tax, not good enough bonus) etc
Posted from TSR Mobile


Unfortunately for bankers, due to the current political climate (Trump: 'We're going to tax Wall Street!!!') and the fact that a large proportion of society view bankers with HUGE hatred and contempt (c. 2008 and ongoing), I can't see hugely positive changes happening in the foreseeable...
(edited 7 years ago)
Original post by frankielogue
I was trying to condense it as much as possible. The point is, why do those that crashed the global economy get paid so well?


The vast majority of people who work in investment banks (let alone banks) do not earn massive amounts: http://news.efinancialcareers.com/uk-en/239063/deutsche-banks-pay-report-shows-93-of-its-staff-earn-less-100k/


Banks do not pay people lavish salaries for the fun of it. The top advisory bankers can generate massive fees for the banks and the top traders likewise. There is also the fact that there is an implicit guarantee as every investor in the market knows that the banks will be bailed out if they get into trouble. Hence they can borrow to fund their operations at lower rates than other industries and therefore generate higher revenues than they would otherwise.
(edited 7 years ago)
Original post by cbreef
Fair enough, but why the f*ck do you live in Silicon valley? :rofl:

Lots of jobs in my field (Software Engineering), nice weather, good sailing, skiing a reasonable drive away and (practically) free petrol (but Americans don't see it that way).
Original post by cbreef
Would you give to any charities or help anyone?

I already do, but my biggest charitable donation is tax. I will never use tax-funded services to anything like the value of the tax that I have paid. Anyone earning 'a lot' is supporting a lot of people at the lower end of the income scale.
Original post by RogerOxon
Lots of jobs in my field (Software Engineering), nice weather, good sailing, skiing a reasonable drive away and (practically) free petrol (but Americans don't see it that way).

I already do, but my biggest charitable donation is tax. I will never use tax-funded services to anything like the value of the tax that I have paid. Anyone earning 'a lot' is supporting a lot of people at the lower end of the income scale.


Do you work for a BigCo (ala Google, FB, Twitter etc) or Unicorn (ala Uber, Airbnb etc)?

If so what's the lifestyle like with your compensation (base+bonus+stock) in the bay area?

Posted from TSR Mobile
This thread is filled with labour morons who like to sit at home and claim benefits. Yes, it is a lot of money but bankers work on average 80/90 hours weeks and they deserve way more than that. Practically half of what they earn is not theirs and its not fair. They shouldn't have to pay such an absurd level of tax. I say the top band should be 30-35%.
Original post by RogerOxon
Lots of jobs in my field (Software Engineering), nice weather, good sailing, skiing a reasonable drive away and (practically) free petrol (but Americans don't see it that way).

I already do, but my biggest charitable donation is tax. I will never use tax-funded services to anything like the value of the tax that I have paid. Anyone earning 'a lot' is supporting a lot of people at the lower end of the income scale.

And why is that really a bad thing?
Original post by cbreef
And why is that really a bad thing?

I assume that you're referring to the tax comment. Paying a reasonable rate of tax on high earnings is not a bad thing - I was making the point that a lot of high earning employees do contribute to society. They're not all greedy and self-centered. The other point was that, in some areas, you need to earn a lot just to pay the rent.
Original post by Princepieman
Do you work for a BigCo (ala Google, FB, Twitter etc) or Unicorn (ala Uber, Airbnb etc)?

If so what's the lifestyle like with your compensation (base+bonus+stock) in the bay area?

I work for a major semiconductor manufacturer. I bought a house here 6 years ago - I took on more debt that I was comfortable with then, but am now in a position of having fixed housing costs at a relatively low level. The lifestyle is good - I am conscious of how much I spend, but I don't have to be. I'm about to start paying overseas fees for our first child, so that will have an impact.

Anyone that wants to work in this area has to research housing costs thoroughly. What seem like big salaries elsewhere don't go very far here.

The only major thing that I don't like is the new President :frown:
Original post by samantham999
This thread is filled with labour morons who like to sit at home and claim benefits. Yes, it is a lot of money but bankers work on average 80/90 hours weeks and they deserve way more than that. Practically half of what they earn is not theirs and its not fair. They shouldn't have to pay such an absurd level of tax. I say the top band should be 30-35%.


While I agree that a lot of the hate towards bankers is unnecessary, often spurned on by jealousy and fuelled by the propagandist media (right wing as well as left wing), you're making ludicrous generalisations when you claim that this thread is filled with labour idiots who are living off benefits!! Where did you get that cliched, simplistic idea from?

People are entitled to disagree with you and express constructively negative views about the banking industry if they want to. That's what healthy debate is all about. They shouldn't be ridiculed and called moronic. Nobody on here was being offensively negative about bankers...
The banks are going to move to the EU soon anyway so they won't have to pay the British level of taxes any more.
Original post by MagicNMedicine
The banks are going to move to the EU soon anyway so they won't have to pay the British level of taxes any more.


no they won't, it's really as simple as that

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