Morgan Stanley is scheduled to hear about bonuses tomorrow. Ahead of the numbers, management has been telling employees to manage their expectations, 'cause they're not getting much. To that end, today the bank has announced that when people do get an exact figure, to take that number and then think about what forty percent of it is-- that's how much you're actually getting now.

Morgan Stanley has sought to pre-empt new rules capping cash pay-outs on Wall Street, deferring 60 per cent of employees’ 2010 bonuses. The announcement came as the bank reported a higher-than-expected 88 per cent jump in fourth-quarter profits in spite of a fall in fixed income trading revenues.

Morgan Stanley did not disclose the precise form 2010’s deferred pay-outs would take. In 2009, the bank gave out restricted options that vest after three years and cash that is held by Morgan Stanley for a similar period and is subject to “clawbacks” if the employee underperforms.

So, this sounds bad, but before anyone gets preemptively upset, let's look on the bright side-- those at MS will most likely still be getting their money sooner than Credit Suisse, whose employees have been told to sit tight 'til 2014.

Morgan Stanley Defers Bonuses [FT]