Flemings, the British investment bank that owns Jardine Fleming, lost 31 of its 34-strong treasury team last week as the takeover by Chase Manhattan Corp started to take effect.
The move came after Chase warned areas of overlap would be eliminated but it also emerged yesterday that as people began losing jobs, large options paid to Flemings executive directors were also being triggered, releasing up to GBP100 million (HK$1.17 billion) in gains.
Bank executives received 5.7 million options, which after the US$7.7 billion Chase deal is worth GBP27 per share - a hefty premium to the GBP11.50 Flemings price at the time of the takeover.
According to the latest Flemings annual report and accounts, most of the options were granted with exercise prices of GBP6.97 to GBP11.35 per share, and it appeared Flemings' main board directors - which includes chief executive William Garrett and the co-heads of investment banking Bernard Taylor and Henry Strutt - received GBP18.6 million in part cash, part Chase shares.
By March 31 the three directors between them had 691,676 options in the company, all of which are expected to have been exercised.
Mr Strutt is said to have received his latest tranche of 25,000 options on November 25 last year at only GBP9.85 per share, and an additional 80,000 options were granted to executives on February 9 across the group at GBP11.35 - amounting to a payout of GBP2.16 million, or GBP1.3 million profit.