NEW YORK, March 3 (Reuters) - Capital One Financial Corp (COF.N: Quote, Profile, Research) Chief Executive Richard Fairbank was awarded $9.82 million of compensation in 2008, down 52 percent from a year earlier, and also realized $19.24 million from exercising stock options.

In a proxy filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the McLean, Virginia-based company said Fairbank was granted $9.75 million of option awards and $68,344 of other compensation. The latter was primarily for personal use of a driver. His total compensation was $20.41 million in 2007.

Fairbank became chief executive in 1994 and has since 1997 given up salary and bonuses in exchange for options or performance-based shares.

Capital One said the 58-year-old Fairbank realized the additional $19.24 million by exercising options on 1.2 million shares between Feb. 1 to May 29 under a previously adopted trading plan. It said the options had been set to expire on June 10, 2008.

The company reported Fairbank's compensation in a summary compensation table included in a proxy filing on Tuesday with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Some pay consultants and governance experts tabulate executive pay differently, saying the summary total may be imperfect because it counts options and stock as part of pay when they vest rather than when they are awarded.

Since 2005, Fairbank has transformed Capital One from the largest independent MasterCard and Visa card issuer into a more diversified banking company, mainly by acquiring Hibernia Corp and North Fork Bancorp Inc. Last month, Capital One bought Maryland's Chevy Chase Bank.

Capital One lost $46 million in 2008, largely because of increasing credit losses and a writedown for its auto finance business. It also took about $3.55 billion from the government's $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program.

Capital One shares closed up 10 cents at $10.20 on the New York Stock Exchange. They have fallen 84 percent from their 52-week high of $63.50 set on Sept. 22. (Reporting by Jonathan Stempel; Editing by Andre Grenon)