Unnoticed in the fuss over Prudential's get-rich scheme for its top brass is the fact that Jonathan Bloomer, the insurer's chief executive, was not even the fattest cat in the boardroom last year.

The man with the loudest purr was Mark Tucker, whose bonus for boosting the Pru's Asian business pushed his pay to nearly £1.6m (&euro2.5m). Bloomer had to struggle along on just over £1m and must wait to see if the Pru board dusts off the controversial sidelined proposal.