Nassim Taleb: End Bonuses For Bankers
>The asymmetric nature of the bonus (an incentive for success without a corresponding disincentive for failure) causes hidden risks to accumulate in the financial system and become a catalyst for disaster.I think this claim contains a pretty elementary mistake.  No bonus is a disincentive, because base salaries can be relatively low; not receiving a bonus is a large opportunity cost.  If I could get a 400k salary, but I instead opt for a 200k salary with a 400k expected bonus, then if I don't get my bonus I'm 200k behind where I could have been if I just took the salary.