Goldman Sachs Group Inc. executives and board members may have reaped as much as $3 billion from stock options granted during the 2008 financial crisis, according to the Wall Street Journal.

In December of that year, the bank granted 36 million options with a strike price of $78.78 to about 350 partners and directors.

The securities have generated an estimated $3 billion of gains as the firm’s stock has tripled, the newspaper reported Monday, citing a review of regulatory filings.

The awards were granted to incentivize top performers even as the global credit crisis endangered the New York-based firm and pushed its shares down 61 percent in 2008, forcing Goldman to slash compensation costs.

Goldman stock (GS) was trading late Monday up $1.09, or 0.46%, at $238.73.