Behind headlines of record losses, a small group of Wall Street traders on commodities, currencies and interest-rate trading desks have made huge profits for the banks that employ them. That is setting up a scramble as traders vie for dwindling pools of bonus money once heaped on such top performers.

So far, they look to be on the losing side of the trade. Top officers at Goldman Sachs, UBS, Deutsche Bank, and Barclays all are forgoing bonus payments for 2008.