Two more MDs left Goldman's New York equities team
Joe Montesano, Goldman Sachs' 46-year-old former head of America's equity trading and global program trading, has left the firm two years after receiving the sort of ($35m) bonus that should allow him to ramp up the central heating for life. But sources at the firm say he's not the only exit in equities.
We understand that two managing directors on the team - Sandy Bernhardt and Brant Duber - have also gone in recent weeks.
Goldman Sachs isn't commenting. Bernhardt, who was very popular and who'd been at Goldman since 2010 and who was made MD in 2014 may not have left of his own volition. Insiders say he retired, although this can be Goldman speak for ushering senior staff out the door.
Duber, who was in equity sales, is thought to have gone to Eminence Capital, a New York equity fund.
The exits come as Goldman seeks to tweak its strategy in the wake of last week's investor day and last year's large losses in the consumer business. Although bonuses paid to salespeople and traders were better than expected for 2022, they fell short compared to increases in revenues on most desks.
The program trading desk did particularly well in 2021, which was when Montesano received his enormous bonus. It's not clear how much Duber and Bernhardt were paid two years ago, but last year's payment is unlikely to have compared favorably.
As people leave Goldman, the firm is not necessarily replacing them. Speaking last week, Denis Coleman, Goldman's CFO, said the firm will be "curtailing the replacement hiring of normal course attrition." Put simply, one insider said that when people leave, they are not being replaced.
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