Macquarie Bank’s Nicholas O’Kane’s staggering wealth as he suddenly quits

Macquarie Bank’s $170 million man Nicholas O’Kane shocked many in the financial industry when he announced he was stepping down from his lucrative role.

Mr O’Kane has earned that eye-watering figure in six years since joining the company’s executive committee in 2017, dubbed the ‘millionaire factory’.

He has been with Macquarie since 1995 and earned $57.6 million in the bank’s 2023 financial year.

His pay package surpassed that of Macquarie Bank CEO Shemara Wikramanayake, whose total ‘compensation’ for 2023 was just $32.8 million in comparison.

Despite Mr O’Kane’s staggering wealth, he has remained relatively out of the public eye, with many surprised by Tuesday’s announcement that he will leave Macquarie.

Ms Wikramanayake said he was stepping back from the company for “personal reasons” during an operational briefing this week.

‘He has made a huge contribution and impact. Part of that is building a great team around the world, especially in the resources sector, but recently across CGM,” she said.

Mr O’Kane brought great success to Macquarie in his role as head of the Commodities and Global Markets (CGM) group.

Macquarie’s CGM saw profits skyrocket to $6 billion last year, up from $1.6 billion in 2018, and Mr O’Kane’s earnings have earned him the title of the company’s highest-paid director.

He even made more money than Citigroup CEO Jane Fraser and JPMorgan boss Jamie Dimon.

Mr O’Kane bought Sydney’s most expensive home of the year in 2021 – a spectacular $40 million property in Point Piper overlooking the harbour.

The house was owned by Sydney FC chairman Scott Barlow, who bought the house in 2010 for $8.8 million.

Mr O’Kane is also an avid fan of the Richmond Tigers, with his office filled with paraphernalia of the football team, the Australian Financial Statement reported.

The bank’s CEO cited “personal reasons” for O’Kane’s sudden departure

The bulk of Mr. O’Kane’s pay last year consisted of a $39.8 million retained earnings share, a rolling program paid out over seven years.

That was nearly double his 2022 retained earnings share of $21.3 million.

His base pay was very modest compared to just $723,419 in 2023. He also took home an available profit share of $17 million.

The huge pay package recognizes that Mr O’Kane’s department has played a key role in boosting profits by 10 per cent year-on-year despite a tough market.

The bank has been nicknamed the ‘millionaire factory’ for its generous pay and bonus structure over the past two decades, but insists all rewards are performance-related.

Macquarie Bank also earned a reputation as a ‘work hard, play hard’ group.

A book called ‘The Millionaires’ Factory’, written by Joyce Moullakis and Chris Wright of the Australian newspaper, provided insight into Macquarie’s turbo atmosphere.

This included people having sex in the shower or under the desk, and drinking from the fully stocked drinks fridge while working 12 to 16 hours a day.

The bank has been nicknamed the ‘millionaire factory’ for its generous pay and bonus structure over the past two decades, but insists all rewards are performance-related

In the run-up to the 2008 global financial crisis, the party culture at Macquarie was such that it was a tradition to go to a ‘gentleman’s club’ every Wednesday afternoon – but only for the male bankers – and one day pornographic magazines were found in one of the toilets.

The drinks fridge opened around noon, and in the early 2000s – when Macquarie’s after-tax profits rose from $250 million in 2002 to $1.803 billion in 2008 – the party culture was endemic.

The parties were held in five-star hotels and on yachts and included lavish gifts for Macquarie’s loyal employees, including a key ring from luxury jewelery house Tiffany at Christmas.

Mr O’Kane will step down at the end of February and will be replaced by Simon Wright, the current head of CGM’s financial markets division.