Encore Rewards Executives with Bonuses, Salary Hikes

Debt purchaser Encore Capital Group (Nasdaq: ECPG) said in an SEC filing Wednesday that it has awarded four top executives a cumulative $908,500 in performance bonuses for the year ended December 31, 2007.

The cash bonuses were awarded under the company’s Key Contributor Bonus Plan, which was based on Encores’ performance relative to certain financial goals for the year and management’s contribution to certain key corporate initiatives during the year.

Brandon Black, Encore’s president and CEO, was awarded a bonus of $425,000; Paul Grinberg, executive vice president and CFO, received $286,000; Robin Pruitt, senior vice president, general counsel and secretary, was awarded $106,852; and SVP - Outsourcing Channels, George Brooker, got a $90,750 cash bonus.

The company also announced pay raises for the four executives.

Encore awarded the bonuses for executive performance in a year that saw revenue flat and earnings markedly down (“Encore Reports Weak Quarter, Year as it Expands Legal Collections,” Feb. 20). But the company embarked on a number of strategic initiatives designed to drive shareholder value in the years to come, including exiting the healthcare debt purchasing market and expanding the legal collections channel for portfolios it owns.