Business

Goldman bonuses grow on Obama stock rout

By trying to do the right thing on bonuses, Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein might have inadvertently done very right by his employees — while at the same time creating unintended consequences.

And he can thank President Obama.

Though Blankfein was trying to stave off another p.r. nightmare by reducing the cash component of bonuses in favor of more stock, he and the bank’s 30 top employees got a huge gift last Thursday when Obama once again declared war on Wall Street, this time proposing limits on banks’ risk-taking and limiting investment banking activities at firms that also run commercial banks.

The news sent bank shares tumbling sharply both Thursday and Friday — the day on which Goldman priced shares it will use to pay employees. But because Goldman’s stock had sunk more than 8 percent during that two-day sell off, Goldman employees will end up getting more stock to reach the dollar equivalent of their bonuses. And that means the bonus amount could be even higher as the shares recover.

Goldman shares closed basically flat at $154.98, vs. Friday’s close of $154.12.

Paying bonuses mainly in stock may result in lost tax revenue, as most stock payments don’t get taxed until an employee decides to cash out, experts said. That could be bad news for New York, where state and local governments have come to count on taxing Wall Street bonuses.

Meanwhile, Goldman, which has borne the brunt of the public’s outrage over bonuses, is said to be capping the salary and bonuses of its London-based partners at $1.6 million. The pay caps are expected to impact 100 employees at Goldman’s offices in London mark.decambre@nypost.com