Some Citigroup executives prospered despite bailout

Citigroup Inc. said in an SEC filing Monday that Chief Executive Vikram Pandit had total compensation of $10.8 million last year. But that figure does not reflect the original value of stock and options he got when he joined the company at the start of 2008.

Citigroup said in the proxy statement for its annual shareholders meeting that the stock awards were worth nearly $37.3 million at the time they were granted.

The commentary and charts in Citigroup's filing were confusing enough that many news outlets reported without caveats that Pandit's pay package was worth $10.8 million.

Citigroup got $25 billion in taxpayer capital in October through the Troubled Asset Relief Program, and has since received an additional $20 billion. Banks that accept goverment aid become subject to restrictions on executive compensation.

Pandit's salary for 2008 was $958,333. That pay, plus the value of the restricted stock and options he got as a sign-on bonus, brought his total compensation to $38.2 million.

However, a steep drop in Citigroup's stock has wiped out most of the stated value of those awards. The company said the shares that Pandit received were worth $1.83 million as of last Thursday.

In its summary compensation table, Citigroup valued the restricted stock and options that Pandit received at $9.84 million, a number that it said reflected the accounting costs it recorded for those awards.

Pandit and Chief Financial Officer Gary Crittenden received no bonuses or performance-based equity awards last year. Citigroup listed Crittenden's total compensation for 2008 at $12.2 million, down from $19.4 million the previous year. Most of that compensation was stock that has declined significantly in value.

Crittenden's salary was $500,000 last year. His compensation also included $126,256 worth of ground transportation, which works out to an average of $345 a day.

Three other Citigroup executives fared much better in the cash compensation department. The company awarded them bonuses that it described as "deferred cash retention awards.''

James Forese, co-head of Citigroup's global markets business, was granted $5.26 million. Ajay Banga, chief executive of Citigroup's Asia Pacific operations, and Stephen Volk, the company's vice chairman, were granted $3.6 million each.

Those awards were granted in January of this year but included in their compensation totals for 2008. The three also got performance-based stock and option awards. Citigroup valued those at $3.5 million for Forese and $2.6 million for Banga and Volk.