Sandy Weill, former chief executive of Citigroup, is probably Hollywood's image of a successful banker. He fought his way up the Wall Street ladder by acquiring firms that had fallen on hard times and could be bought in the equivalent of a car boot sale.

Several of Weill's Wall Street brokerages may not have smelt very savoury but he scrubbed them up and squeezed them mercilessly until they made a profit. In the early days, working for him couldn't have been much fun, unless you enjoyed turning off lights and taking the subway. Perks? There were none.