The report has revealed that Keith Skeoch, chief executive of the financial services firm, saw his pay increase to around £1.47 million from around £1.09m in 2018.

Similarly, the firm’s vice-chairman, Martin Gilbert, who also shared the role of chief executive with Mr Skeoch last year, was paid just over £1.2m for 2019, a rise from the £1.09m paid in 2018.

Basic salaries for the two bosses remained unchanged at £600,000 in 2019, however, their overall takehome pay was boosted by the firm’s executive incentive plan (EIP) which provided cash bonuses of £187,000 for Mr Skeoch and £124,000 for Mr Gilbert.

Mr Skeoch was also awarded deferred EIP bonus worth £563,000, with Mr Gilbert awarded £374,000.

The annual report has also revealed that the firm is going ahead with its planned final dividend to shareholders, despite the trend amongst companies to suspend dividends in light of the recent economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

The report also highlighted that Standard Life Aberdeen’s underlying pre-tax profits dropped from £650m in 2018 to £584m in 2019. It also revealed that the firm’s revenue fell by 12.5% to stand at £1.63 billion.

Standard Life Aberdeen’s statutory pre-tax profits for the latest period stood at £243m, marking an improvement from 2018’s £787m loss.

Commenting on the company’s decision to maintain its dividend payout, Mr Skeoch said: “During this period, we have sustained the dividend, despite tough market conditions, and our shareholders have also benefited from a substantial return of capital: with £1.75bn returned over 2018/2019 through our ‘B’ share scheme and our on-market share buyback.

“We believe that we are well placed to continue to reward our patient shareholders with long-term value.”