Troubled banks reveal 500 staff members paid more than £1m

Reports released hours apart showed that 95 staff at taxpayer-backed Royal Bank of Scotland and 428 at Barclays picked up seven-figure deals – including five at Barclays who got more than £5m despite a year of scandal and falling profits.

RBS, which is 81 per cent owned by the taxpayer, said total pay for its eight top executives was £21m, down 16 per cent on 2011.

One employee earned £4.8m, including long-term incentive shares that will pay out if certain targets are met.

Its report also showed of the 95 employees in the millionaires’ club, 36 earned between £1.5m and £5m and one was paid more than £5m. Average salary across all staff was £34,000.

Trade unions hit out over “rampant inequality” between pay for those on the front line and bankers at the top as Barclays said more than 71,500 staff received less than £25,000 in 2012.

Barclays said it reduced its 2012 bonus pool by £860m for Libor rigging and mis-selling, while it clawed back an additional £300m in previous awards and long-term incentives for the Libor scandal.

Former Barclays boss Bob Diamond – who quit last summer in the wake of Libor-fixing– will continue to be paid until July. He is entitled to annual salary of £1.4m and £675,000 a year in lieu of pension.

RBS boss Stephen Hester did not receive a bonus, though he was awarded £1.6m in deferred shares.