Antony Jenkins said it had been a difficult year

The chief executive of Barclays bank, Antony Jenkins, is to waive his bonus for last year

He said it would be wrong for him to receive a bonus, given what was a “difficult” year for Barclays.

It is thought Mr Jenkins was in line to receive about £1m of a potential maximum entitlement of £2.75m.

Mr Jenkins took over as chief executive last August, just as Barclays was being rocked over mis-selling scandals and other issues.

He said in a statement: “To avoid further unnecessary public debate on this matter, I wish to make clear that I concluded early this week that I do not wish to be considered for a bonus award for 2012 and I have communicated that decision to the board.

“The year just past was clearly a very difficult one for Barclays and its stakeholders, with multiple issues of our own making besetting the bank.

“I think it only right that I bear an appropriate degree of accountability for those matters and I have concluded that it would be wrong for me to receive a bonus for 2012 given those circumstances.”

On Friday, Barclays faced new claims that the UK authorities were investigating the bank over money received from Qatar. The Financial Times alleged that Barclays lent Qatar money to invest in the bank.