Bank increases 2025 bonus pool after cutting jobs

3 December 2025

2 minute read

Royal Bank of Canada has released its annual report for the year ending October 31st 2025. It suggests that when bonuses are announced at RBC Capital Markets next week, they will be higher than they were last year.

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RBC said today that it's spent CA$10bn ($7.7bn) on cash-based variable compensation across the bank this year, up from CA$8.8bn last year, an increase of 13%.

RBC also spent CA$2.7bn on "benefits and retention compensation" (up 13%) and CA$1bn on share-based compensation (flat). The bank also disclosed today it's increased 'capital market compensation plan unit awards' to 3,147, up from 3,053 last year. This coincided with a 21% increase in its share price.

This is the second year running that RBC has increased its bonus pool. Last year, the cash bonus pool was up 16%. However, when bonuses were actually announced at the bank, there was some disappointment, particular among bankers at RBC Capital Markets in Europe.

In the 12 months to October 2025, revenues at RBC Capital Markets rose 20%. Net income was up nearly 18%.

RBC's salespeople and traders seem the most likely to benefit from the swollen bonus pool: markets revenues were up 28% in the 12 months to October.

While bonuses across RBC are up, headcount in RBC Capital Markets is down. Today's results reveal that the bank cut 362 people from the capital markets business between August and September. RBC Capital Markets now employs 7,648 people, up around 200 on the start of the year.

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