Morning Coffee: The Next CEO of Goldman Sachs Is…
Goldman Sachs chief executive Lloyd Blankfein is 58-years-old, and, perhaps more importantly, has been on the job for more than six years. Forced to navigate the firm through some of the most trying times in its history, Blankfein may be aging in dog years.
So is he ready to hang ‘em up? Nope, not yet. Speaking at a conference in New York, Blankfein said that he is still excited to come to work every day, and hasn’t gotten the feeling that many executives do when they know it’s the right time to step aside, according to Bloomberg.
That time can’t be too far away, however, as Blankfein also noted that he is “close to 100%” sure that the next chief executive of Goldman currently works at the firm. Blankfein, admittedly, doesn’t have the power to choose his own successor – the board is charged with that task – but he certainly has his hands on the pulse of the organization.
Those most often rumored to take Blankfein’s place include Gary Cohn, president and COO of Goldman’s investment banking unit, and J. Michael Evans, vice chairman and global head of growth markets. Or maybe there’s a dark horse waiting in the wings.
Did You Bring Enough Guys? (WSJ)
Roughly 500 German police, tax officials and prosecutors showed up at Deutsche Bank’s door on Wednesday as part of a long-running tax fraud investigation. Two top Deutsche Bank execs – co-Chief Executive Jürgen Fitschen and Chief Financial Officer Stefan Krause – are among those being investigated.
New Compliance Chief (The Telegraph)
If you weren’t aware, Barclays has a compliance problem. With that in mind, the firm has hired a former regulator, Hector Sants, the ex-chief executive of the Financial Services Authority, as its new compliance chief.
Ben’s Got Your Back (Bloomberg)
The Federal Reserve is expanding its asset-purchasing program, and will continue to keep interest rates near record lows until the unemployment rate drops below 6.5%. Can we get that in writing?
Got some Berkshire Hathaway stock lying around the house? Warren Buffett is willing to buy it from you for as much as 120 percent of book value, which was $111,718 a share as of Sept. 30.
Still Eyeing Wall Street (eFinancialCareers)
While European students are shying away from investment banking careers, the attraction of their U.S. counterparts hasn’t waned much.
Now That’s a Bonus (eFinancialCareers)
While banks like Deutsche are imposing punitive deferrals on bonus payments this year, Jefferies is paying upfront, and in cash.
Buzz Around the Office
The best holiday cards tend to be those that are out of touch and just a bit awkward. Here are 24 examples.
List of the Day: Soft Skills
Getting a job offer is often more about soft skills than technical proficiencies. Here are three important ones.
- The ability to listen.
- Adaptability.
- A positive demeanor.
