A hair-raising Halloween

Grown-ups on Bay Street get excited as Oct. 31 approaches-it's the end of the big banks' fiscal year. This year-end could be scary. The banks have been hammered by loan losses and storms in financial markets, yet Ottawa wants them to lend more to help fight the recession. There are lots of goodies at stake too-such as bank execs' performance-based pay packets. Below are some numbers to watch out for in the banks' 2009 financial results, and how the banks fared on those measures up to the end of their third quarter. Pay particular attention to:

Diluted earnings per share Banks have issued some new common shares, and lots of new preferreds, to shore up their balance sheets. But if earnings decline, it will be harder to maintain fat dividends on the shares.

Tier 1 capital ratio Bank of Canada Governor Mark Carney has criticized the banks for hoarding cash. He'd like the ratio closer to 9.7%.

Provision for credit losses Reflects "impairment" or "deterioration" in the banks' loan portfolios, meaning borrowers aren't paying money back.

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Banks Assets Diluted earnings Tier 1 Provision for (billions) per share* capital ratio credit losses*

Royal Bank $659.9 Down 33.8% 2.9% Up 122%

of Canada

CEO pay (2008) - Gordon Nixon $9.6 million

Toronto-Dominion Bank $544.6 Down 31.2% 11.2% Up 19%

CEO pay (2008) - Edmund Clark $8.0 million

Bank of Nova Scotia $485.9 Down 10.5% 10.4% Up 213%

CEO pay (2008) - Rick Waugh $7.5 million

Bank of Montreal $415.4 Down 27.0% 11.7% Up 41%

CEO pay (2008) - Bill Downe $6.4 million

CIBC $335.9 Up 116.0% 12.0% Up 122%

CEO pay (2008) - Gerry McCaughey $1.4 million + TBD

National Bank of $134.6 Down 17.4% 10.5% Up 164%

Canada

CEO pay (2008) - Louis Vachon $5.3 million

* First nine months, fiscal 2009 compared with fiscal 2008