My £100,000 letdown - banker

FORMER Flemings chairman John Manser has been named in a High Court writ issued by the grandson of the man who founded the RAF. Lord Trenchard, 50, claims he was refused a bonus, despite winning millions of pounds of business for the investment bank.

The ex-Flemings employee said he had been dismayed by his low salary of £100,000 when he joined Robert Fleming in 1996 as head of Japanese investment banking, but was assured he would make up the shortfall with high bonuses. However, despite being awarded a bonus of £25,000 after only four months, Trenchard received no further awards in his four years with the company.

This was despite generating income for the bank of £2.1m the year after he joined and £1.9m in his final full year.

Trenchard, who was made redundant in 2000, is claiming damages from Chase EU Holdings and CA Premier Banking, the companies that acquired Flemings that year.

He claims he complained to Manser that he had expected the first bonus he received to be at least at the level of his salary and was told Flemings had got the amount wrong. Trenchard was given a further £25,000 six months later, but he made it clear he was still not happy.

In the writ, Trenchard also claims he had expected to be awarded share options on joining Flemings - a standard practice - but had been told no options were available. However, employees who joined after Trenchard had received options.

Chase EU Holdings would not comment on the forthcoming case.

Lord Trenchard began his City career with Kleinwort bank in 1973 and spent many years in Japan, becoming president there of Kleinwort Benson International. His grandfather, the first Viscount Trenchard, was known as the father of the RAF and became the first Chief of the Air Staff in 1918.