“Jamie Dimon, chairman and chief executive of JPMorgan Chase was paid $20m in 2013, a 74 per cent annual increase, despite high-profile legal woes that have plagued the biggest US bank by assets.

“His base salary of $1.5m remained flat while Mr Dimon was awarded $18.5m in restricted stock options, according to a company filing on Friday. That compares to 2012 when Mr Dimon’s pay was cut in half to $11.5m after the “London Whale” trading scandal that cost the bank billions.”

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“Analysts said that despite the legal problems, his performance was linked to the share price, which rose 33 per cent last year. Some investors were not concerned about the pay rise, with one noting that baseball players earn more than Mr Dimon.

“However, Dennis Kelleher, chief executive of Better Markets, a Washington DC-based group that promotes public interest in financial markets, said: “It’s as shocking as it is indefensible,” referring to Mr Dimon’s pay. “It’s a real slap in the face to the DoJ and financial regulators who think that the actions that they’ve taken in the last year have been appropriate to punish and deter JPMorgan Chase.” 

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Read full Financial Times article here