Former Morgan Stanley (MS) Chief Executive Officer John Mack said compensation on Wall Street needs to be lowered as firms face higher capital requirements and focus on reducing risk.

“One area that has to be squeezed is the compensation number,” Mack said today on Bloomberg Television in an interview with Erik Schatzker and Stephanie Ruhle.

Mack said compensation before the financial crisis was “unbelievably generous.”

To contact the reporter on this story: Michael J. Moore in New York at mmoore55@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Steve Dickson at sdickson1@bloomberg.net