Nine top Barclays executives including chief executive Antony Jenkins and investment banking head Rich Ricci received £40.3m in shares on Wednesday from earlier-year incentive plans, a month after the bank said it would take a stricter line on pay.

The announcement came two hours after Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne said he would increase a levy on major banks' balance sheets to ensure that banks make "a fair contribution" to an economy that is expected to grow at only around 0.6% this year.