WASHINGTON, Feb 1: US President Barack Obama has warned Wall Street bosses that their ‘arrogance and greed’ will not be tolerated.

Mr Obama was reacting to the news that the Wall Street had used a government bailout package to dole out $18 million in executive bonuses.

Mr Obama said in his weekly radio and television address that “the American people will not excuse or tolerate such arrogance and greed”.

He noted that even as Wall Street bosses petitioned for taxpayer assistance, they shamefully paid out nearly $20 billion in bonuses for 2008.

The White House said that President Obama was going to tighten restrictions on compensation for banks that had accepted bailout funds.

The Obama team said that the president would soon crack down on big bonuses, shareholder enrichment and overall accountability.

Banking executives, however, argue that they need to pay bonuses to retain quality executives.

Of the 26 Wall Street banks that have received $1 billion or more in bailout funds from the government, 19 said they had either paid bonuses or were willing to do so.