Unlock Editor's Digest for free
Roula Khalaf, editor of the FT, picks her favorite stories in this weekly newsletter.
Goldman Sachs' Jim Esposito, one of CEO David Solomon's top lieutenants, is leaving the Wall Street firm in a surprise move.
Solomon told employees in a memo Monday that Esposito, 56, known to colleagues as “Espo,” would be leaving the bank after nearly three decades. Most recently, he co-headed Goldman Sachs' flagship investment banking and trading business.
“Personally, I am grateful for Jim’s advice, friendship and sense of humor throughout our many years together,” Solomon wrote in the memo, obtained by the Financial Times.
After the two companies merged in 2022, Esposito was named one of three co-heads of Goldman's investment banking and trading division, alongside Ashok Varadhan and Dan Dees. The unit generated about two-thirds of Goldman's revenue last year.
Esposito was viewed internally as one of several candidates who could be in the running to replace Solomon, although bank President John Waldron is considered the main contender.
Solomon has led Goldman since late 2018. Esposito's departure is the latest high-profile departure in recent years, amid a series of restructurings and strategic changes at the bank. Solomon's leadership style was the subject of internal criticism last year, but the Financial Times reported that he retained the support of the Goldman board. If he stays with the bank until 2026, he will receive a special stock bonus.
Esposito joined Goldman in 1995 as a salesperson in emerging markets debt and was made partner in 2006. He previously co-headed Goldman's two investment banking and trading divisions when they were separate companies.