The NTMA executes its mandates through five business units: the Funding and Debt Management Unit, the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund Unit, the National Development Finance Agency, NewERA and the State Claims Agency. The NTMA’s business units are supported by its corporate functions which provide services across Finance, Operations, Information Technology, Risk, HR, Legal, Compliance, Communications and Internal Audit.

A number of NTMA staff are on secondment to the Department of Finance following the revocation of the delegation of banking system functions of the Minister for Finance to the NTMA from August 2011.

The NTMA assigns staff to the National Asset Management Agency (NAMA) and the Strategic Banking Corporation of Ireland (SBCI) and also provides them with business and support services and systems. NAMA and the SBCI reimburse the NTMA the costs of these services (including staff costs). Both NAMA and the SBCI are independent entities and have their own separate boards.

Other than staff assigned to NAMA and the SBCI, the NTMA had 464 employees at end-2016. 302 employees were assigned to NAMA and 16 employees were assigned to the SBCI.

The NTMA’s remuneration model is based on confidential, individually negotiated employment contracts, with competitive, market-aligned remuneration. The typical remuneration package comprises a fixed base salary, pension entitlement and provision for discretionary performance-related pay. In a limited number of cases other allowances or benefits are paid.

The NTMA’s objective is to ensure that its remuneration arrangements facilitate it in attracting, developing and retaining high performing and motivated employees, with appropriate skills and experience, so as to ensure that the NTMA can discharge fully its statutory functions in an effective and efficient manner, while complying with applicable law. It aims to operate a remuneration system which:

• allows the NTMA to compete effectively in the labour market and to recruit and retain high calibre employees.
• reflects the NTMA’s objectives for good corporate governance.
• manages remuneration in an appropriate manner and encourages a high level of performance.
• is consistent with and promotes sound and effective risk management.

Discretionary performance-related payments are intended to reward exceptional performance having regard to the employee’s own performance, the performance of the employee’s area of responsibility, and the overall performance of the NTMA. Performance-related payments are made in accordance with parameters approved by the Agency’s non-executive Remuneration Committee. The overall amount of performance related payments made in respect of any year is also subject to the approval of the Remuneration Committee.

The NTMA made performance-related payments to 115 staff in 2017 in respect of 2016. These payments, in aggregate, totalled €1,175,050. During 2016, the NTMA made performance-related payments to 60 staff totalling, in aggregate, €492,500 in respect of 2015.

NTMA Remuneration at End-2016

Note: Base salary is set out on a pro-rata basis. Total remuneration includes base salary and any other taxable benefits paid to employees (including performance-related payments paid in 2016 in respect of 2015). It does not include employer pension contributions. The public service pension related deduction is applied to NTMA employees.