Notably, BNY Mellon faced considerable pressure from activist investor Marcato Capital over 2015-2016 to reduce its operating costs. The bank has done well over recent years to maintain compensation costs at roughly 37% of revenues – below the figure of 40% for peer State Street. But given that the pressure on interest rates is likely to weigh on BNY Mellon's revenues in the near future, it will be critical for the bank to take a tougher look at its costs to maintain profitability.