The average bonus paid to employees in New York City's securities industry in 2021 jumped by 20% to $257,500, a top New York state financial regulator said on Wednesday.

"Wall Street's soaring profits continued to beat expectations in 2021 and drove record bonuses," New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli said in a statement.

"But recent events are likely to drive near-term profitability and bonuses lower," he added, citing sluggish recovery in other sectors and Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The 2021 bonus pool increased by 21% to $45 billion during the traditional December-March bonus season compared to $37.1 billion in 2020, the report said.

Compensation firm Johnson Associates Inc in November said year-end bonuses for Wall Street staffers in 2021 were set to be the highest since 2009, with investment bankers and equities traders in line for the biggest bonuses.

(Reporting by Noor Zainab Hussain in Bengaluru; Editing by Saumyadeb Chakrabarty)