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on the money
February 27, 2023 | 6:18 p.m
David Solomon will outline his vision for Goldman Sachs at the company’s second Investor Day. Portal
As Goldman Sachs prepares to host its second investor day, rumors are brewing over the bank’s struggles under CEO David Solomon – some bankers say the boss’s bonus should have shrunk more than it did.
As Solomon lays out his vision for the Wall Street giant at Tuesday’s shindig, many are still fretful about their disappointing year-end payouts – and blame their part-time DJ CEO, sources told On The Money.
“The partners suffered a massive drop in wages. They got 50% less this year, partly because of David’s failed ideas,” a source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told The Post. “Solomon only took a 30% cut. Why didn’t he get the same hit as the partners?”
After enduring a scary round of layoffs that claimed more than 3,200 last month, the firm’s surviving partners are clearly frustrated with the state of their bank accounts. However, some also fear they have lost credibility with junior staff whose meager bonuses have been a slap in the face after a year of 100-hour workweeks, sources added.
“Even in bad times, leaders have always said, ‘Let’s pay the kids,'” the source added. “The deal is you bust your ass and get paid at the end of the year. It is embarrassing for the partners that their junior staff has not been paid.”
Solomon’s moonlighting as an amateur DJ is a reported source of anxiety among Goldman’s base. David Solomon/Instagram Some Goldman Sachs employees are wondering why the company is having an investor day at all. Portal
Bonuses have been cut by 90% for some employees at Goldman. Many junior bankers — who raked in six-figure bonuses last year — were only paid $10,000 or $15,000, The Post previously reported.
Some sources at the company say they don’t understand why Solomon is holding another investor day when the first one — held in 2020 just before the pandemic hit — was a flop.
“On the last investor day, Solomon X said and everything turned out the opposite of what he predicted,” a Goldman source bleated to The Post.
In 2020, Solomon promoted Goldman’s fledgling consumer bank Marcus — then a business that generated just 2.4% of the company’s total revenue. After pouring nearly $6 billion into Marcus and never turning a profit, Solomon reduced it after “his ambitions got the better of him,” said a person close to Solomon.
A spokesman for the bank told The Post: “We have set clear strategic direction and look forward to discussing our progress at Investor Day.”
People Close to the Banknote Goldman’s total compensation and benefits fell 15% in the fourth quarter, while CEO salaries fell 29%.
These folks add that Solomon has a solid plan for the second Investor Day, where he will highlight the three core strategies he outlined earlier – growing wallet and funding share in banking and markets, rising management fees in wealth and Wealth Management and Achieving Profitability in Platform Solutions – and how he intends to achieve it.
Still others say hosting an investor day without a radically new vision could be a waste — and generate hype for nothing.
“The risk is that he doesn’t reveal anything at all,” a Goldman source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told The Post. “My guess is it’ll just be more of the same topics of conversation as last time.”
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