HSBC paid its top investment bankers an average bonus of $771,700 last year, an increase of 15% as the UK lender posted record profits and hiked variable remuneration across the bank.

The UK lender paid $392m in bonuses to its 508 so-called material risk-takers within its investment bank — a group of top employees whose actions could impact the risk profile of the bank — compared with $368.6m a year earlier, while the number of these staff in the division declined.