Half of the senior management of Investissement Québec (IQ) now earns more than a million dollars thanks to the payment of a long-term bonus. This increase in compensation comes at the end of a fiscal year in which the financial arm of the Quebec state posted a return of -4.8%, which translates into a loss of 224 million.
Those details surrounding financial performance and overall compensation — which takes into account base salary, bonuses and other perks — are in the crown corporation’s annual report, filed Tuesday.
IQ was not immune to the turmoil in the financial markets, which had an impact on its portfolio. Result: There was an increase in provisions for losses and the value of several investments was revised downwards.
“While our financial results reflect a changing economic situation, they should not overshadow all of the remarkable accomplishments of our team,” IQ President and CEO Guy LeBlanc said in a statement.
Over five years, IQ’s return is 6.3%.
Exceptionally this year, IQ held a technical briefing to provide an update on its compensation practices. Essentially, its representatives argued that the targets to be achieved were demanding and that the fees corresponded to the median of its reference sample – which excludes the major Canadian banks – in this area.
“We are a state-owned company, we cannot, in the market, be among the best payers,” explains Marie Zakïb, senior vice-president, human resources and internal communications. At the same time, we cannot be among the worst payers. We decided to be at the fiftieth percentile. »
Overall, IQ’s top six executives earned $5.9 million, up 23% from fiscal 2021-22. President and CEO Guy Leblanc got 1.06 million.
