PAY in the financial services industry is likely to drop by up to 20 percent this year amid the credit crisis, according to a survey of recruiters.

The survey of 10 recruiters in the United States and 10 in the United Kingdom found that a third expect compensation to drop between 16 and 20 percent, while almost a third predict pay will fall by between 5 and 10 percent.

The survey was held in April by The Smart Cube, a five-year-old firm that supplies research and analysis to the financial services industry, Bloomberg News reported. "Employers are increasingly calling the shots," said Omer Abdullah, co-founder of The Smart Cube and survey overseer.

Last year, the five biggest US securities firms awarded employees a record US$65.6 billion in compensation and benefits, including about US$39 billion in bonuses. So far this year, the smallest of the five, Bear Stearns, has been taken over by JPMorgan Chase and the other four, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Merrill Lynch and Lehman Brothers Holdings, set aside smaller amounts to pay employees in the first quarter as revenue tumbled.