Drop in Wall Street bonuses may hit 50 percent drop

A Wall Street sign is seen outside of the New York Stock Exchange, September 19, 2008.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The drop in Wall Street's bonuses "could rival" the 50 percent fall seen in 2003, with the current market crisis cutting the total amount paid by banks and brokerages to $16 billion, the state comptroller said on Monday.

New York's securities industry could lose even more jobs than first thought. Some 40,000 bankers and brokers could be laid off, which would be 15,000 more than initially forecast, Democratic Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli said in a statement.

(Reporting by Joan Gralla; editing by Dan Grebler)