NEW YORK, NY December 24, 2007 —The sub-prime mortgage crisis continues to play out on Wall Street. Investment banks Bear Stearns and Morgan Stanley reported quarterly losses last week, writing down their mortgage assets by billions of dollars.

WNYC's Lisa Chow reports on what that might mean for this year's bonuses.

So far, projections of this year's bonuses are all over the map. The AP recently reported 14% increases. One study says they'll be flat. Another puts them down 5%-10% from last year's record.

As some investment banks suffer quarterly losses for the first time in years, some top level executives have agreed to give up their bonuses, but most employees will still get theirs.

And the wealth won't be spread evenly. Bankers in the mortgage sector will receive much less than last year. Those working in stocks and commodities will make a lot more.

And those bonuses also benefit the local economy, whether it's in real estate, luxury goods or nonprofit donations. For WNYC, I'm Lisa Chow.