Business Insight Zone

Goldman’s tower of finance in Jersey City.

What financial crisis?

The Guardian gives the skinny on Goldman Sachs:

Goldman to make record bonus payout

Staff at Goldman Sachs staff can look forward to the biggest bonus payouts in the firm’s 140-year history after a spectacular first half of the year, sparking concern that the big investment banks which survived the credit crunch will derail financial regulation reforms.

A lack of competition and a surge in revenues from trading foreign currency, bonds and fixed-income products has sent profits at Goldman Sachs soaring, according to insiders at the firm. [ . . . ]

(Hat tip: the Wall Street Journal’s indispensable MarketBeat blog.)

• Item: Looks like Warren Buffett made a really good investment in Goldman last year.
• Item: It’s not just Goldman that’s doing so well. According to the Guardian piece, Barclays, Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank, JPMorgan, and Morgan Stanley are also reaping major rewards.
• Item: Just like two years ago, “there sits Goldman Sachs, immaculate in a tailored suit, cool as the other side of the pillow, basking in the glow of a quarter in which earnings rose [a ton] from the same period a year ago.”

The more things change, the more some things stay the same.

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Related:

• Must-read: Michael Lewis on the Meltdown
• Keep your powder dry in business.
• Good context on Goldman Sachs.
• Company of the Day [21 September 2007]: Goldman Sachs.

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Photo by Aby Jose, used under a Creative Commons license.

Category: Economics, Finance & Real Estate