Roger Jenkins, a former international athlete, is the Barclays executive who brokered the new investments from the Middle East, who were in turn represented by another one-time athlete, Amanda Staveley - now a partner in private equity firm PCP Capital Partners.
Jenkins is one of the big hitters inside Barclays, though his public profile is eclipsed by Bob Diamond, the president and head of Barclays Capital, the investment banking arm. But, if the rumours are true, Jenkins's pay eclipses even that of Diamond, who took home £36m last year when a three-year performance package is included. Jenkins keeps his pay private as he is not on the board of Barclays, but his role in running Barclays Capital's operations in the Middle East and overseeing the private equity deals means he commands a high salary.
City sources suggest he could take home upwards of £50m.
Although he has been chairman of the bank's Middle East operations for only six months, he has spent years cultivating contacts in the region. An expert in tax planning, Jenkins started his career at Barclays, with a stint at Kleinwort Benson before returning in 1994. A successful sprinter, his brother David was better known after winning a silver medal in the Munich Olympics in 1972 and a gold medal for Scotland at the 1978 Commonwealth Games.
Jenkins the banker led the negotiations with Staveley, who shot to prominence after brokering the takeover of Manchester City by the ruling family of Abu Dhabi who are now taking a stake in Barclays. Aged 35, she is the daughter of a Yorkshire landowner and once harboured ambitions to be an Olympic showjumper or sprinter. She is said to have started her network of contacts after opening a restaurant near Newmarket that was frequented by race-goers and staff from local stables owned by wealthy families from the Gulf.
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