This Wall Street Giant Just Gave Its CEO a Record-Setting Raise — Here’s What’s Inside the Pay Package.
The 32% increase in compensation is the highest among all major Wall Street chief executives.
Key Takeaways
- Morgan Stanley is paying CEO Ted Pick $45 million for 2025, up from $34 million in 2024.
- The 32% raise reflects a record year for the bank and is the biggest percentage increase in pay among major Wall Street CEOs.
- The pay increase follows record financial results for the bank in 2025, including net revenue of about $70.6 billion.
Morgan Stanley boosted CEO Ted Pick’s total compensation to $45 million for 2025 — a 32% jump after a record year — the latest sign of soaring CEO pay at major Wall Street banks.
Ted Pick, 57, received a pay package that rose from $34 million in 2024 to $45 million for 2025, according to a recent filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The increase makes him one of the best‑paid bank chiefs in the U.S., after only his second year as CEO and his first as chairman.
Morgan Stanley has not broken out the exact split between salary, cash bonus and equity, but the structure is heavily based on stock. Most of Pick’s bonus (75%) is deferred over three years and delivered entirely as performance‑vested equity that can be canceled if he misses targets.
In other words, Pick gets a smaller amount of guaranteed, near-term pay (salary plus the non-deferred bonus) and the rest depends on future results and the share price.
Why the board says Pick deserves the raise
Morgan Stanley had a record year in 2025, generating net revenue of about $70.6 billion, up 14% from the previous year, according to the filing. Net income reached about $16.9 billion, while pretax profit climbed to $22 billion, about 25% higher year-over-year.
Shareholders also had a standout year. Total shareholder return came in around 45%, and the firm’s market value reached about $282 billion, per the filing.
The board’s compensation committee called Pick’s work last year “outstanding” in the filing, pointing to the bank’s strong financial performance. Morgan Stanley’s stock grew by 41% in 2025, greater than the 17.9% gain of the S&P 500.
How Pick compares to rivals
Pick’s new compensation number aligns with the rate for top U.S. bank chief executives, which is now typically above $40 million. Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon is at about $47 million for 2025, while JPMorgan Chase’s Jamie Dimon is around $43 million, putting Pick squarely between them. Solomon’s compensation rose by 21% while Dimon’s pay climbed by 10% in 2025 compared to the previous year.
Meanwhile, Wells Fargo raised CEO Charlie Scharf’s pay by 28% to $40 million last year, and Citigroup boosted CEO Jane Fraser’s compensation by 22% to $42 million for 2025.
Pick’s pay increased the most percentage-wise out of all other major Wall Street CEOs.
Last year, Morgan Stanley also introduced an AI tool to take over coding and claimed that it saved developers 280,000 hours of work. The bank also reduced its 80,000-person workforce by 2,000 employees in March, citing AI automation.
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Key Takeaways
- Morgan Stanley is paying CEO Ted Pick $45 million for 2025, up from $34 million in 2024.
- The 32% raise reflects a record year for the bank and is the biggest percentage increase in pay among major Wall Street CEOs.
- The pay increase follows record financial results for the bank in 2025, including net revenue of about $70.6 billion.
Morgan Stanley boosted CEO Ted Pick’s total compensation to $45 million for 2025 — a 32% jump after a record year — the latest sign of soaring CEO pay at major Wall Street banks.
Ted Pick, 57, received a pay package that rose from $34 million in 2024 to $45 million for 2025, according to a recent filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The increase makes him one of the best‑paid bank chiefs in the U.S., after only his second year as CEO and his first as chairman.
