France is considering imposing a 50 per cent levy on bank bonuses for 2009, following the example set by Britain, Les Echos said on its website today.
The newspaper said the tax would apply to bankers who get bonuses of more than €27,000.
According to French afternoon paper
Le Monde, which was citing sources close to the French presidency, France was "already reviewing" plans to take a levy on bank bonuses.
Le Monde, however, did not specify the size of the levy France planned to impose on its bankers.
The office of French president Nicolas Sarkozy and the French finance ministry could not be immediately reached for comment on the reports, while the French Banking Federation declined to comment on the matter.
Earlier today, Mr Sarkozy and British prime minister Gordon Brown had a joint column published in the
Wall Street Journalin which they called for an exceptional tax on global bank bonuses.
Yesterday, British finance minister Alistair Darling said banks operating in Britain would be charged a 50 percent tax rate on employees' bonuses of above £25,000.
Bankers in London's influential City financial district criticised Mr Darling's plans, while a leading Paris-based investment banker said ways would be found to avoid the tax.
"The banks and hedge funds can just increase the basic salary or pay out the bonuses off-shore. It does not make much economic sense as it won't bring in much money to the state," said Saxo Banque France head Pierre-Antoine Dusoulier.
France's top banks are BNP Paribas, Credit Agricole, Societe Generale, BPCE and Credit Mutuel.
Reuters