Blankfein's millions will survive Paulson's plans

Goldman Sachs Group Inc's Lloyd Blankfein, whose $70.3 million paycheck made him Wall Street's most highly compensated chief executive officer last year, could still earn tens of millions annually under the bank-rescue plan run by his former boss, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson.

Executive-pay packages will be restricted for the nine banks receiving a $125 billion infusion of US funds to restart lending, said Paulson, who earned $37.8 million in 2005, his last full year as Goldman's CEO. The investment is part of a $700 billion bailout plan approved by Congress this month.

Blankfein, was Wall Street's best-paid CEO in 2007, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. He "could still make tens of millions of dollars if he continues to receive stock grants and Goldman's stock rises", said David Schmidt, a senior consultant for New York-based compensation firm James F. Reda & Associates.