How can you tell that you’ve fallen out of favour with your employer? One indication might be when someone else turns up to do the job you’re already doing.
This seems to have happened to Guy Saidenberg, global head of FX trading at Goldman Sachs. Bloomberg reports that Goldman has hired Kayhan Mirza from JPMorgan into a partner-level position as global head of FX trading. This comes two weeks after Saidenberg himself was promoted internally to global head of FX trading after the previous occupant of the role retired. What’s going on? When asked, Saidenberg declined to comment. The most likely answer is that Goldman is appointing a co-head to dilute Saidenberg’s power. Co-heads are a popular management structure at Goldman Sachs, but there was no mention of a co-head coming along two weeks’ ago.
Separately, investors are reportedly clamouring for change following yesterday’s Barclays’ bonus pool revelations. The Financial Times reports that investors are disappointed in Barclays’ CEO Antony Jenkins after he failed to reduce the investment bank’s bonus pool as promised. Although we suggest that the increased bonus pool reflects the influence of Skip McGee in America, the FT says co-heads of Barclays’ investment bank Tom King and Eric Bommensath are being held to blame and that investors are pushing for the two men to go. “We think there needs to be change at the top of the investment bank,” one top Barclays shareholder told the paper.
Meanwhile:
Lloyds paid 27 people more than €1m (£821,000) in 2013, up from 25 people in 2012. Barclays paid 481 staff more than £1m, up from 428 in 2012. (City Am)
Standard Chartered reduced its bonus pool 15% to £772m pounds ($1.3bn). (Bloomberg)
Bob Diamond received a ‘tax equalisation payment’ of £80,000 last year from Barclays. (The Times)
“US banks in particular are not pulling out of this game – they see the industry as highly profitable and are continuing to aggressively go after the best staff.” (Financial Times)
Jerome Kerviel is on a protest walk. (Bloomberg)
“When you spend enough time in the private-equity industry, you realize the richest guy in the room is the one selling his business.” (Bloomberg)
James Fleming, Bank of America Merrill Lynch’s co-head of Asia Pacific global capital markets, who joined from the Swiss bank UBS three years ago, is moving to lead its UK equity capital markets business. (Financial News)
Why old hedge fund managers lose their touch. (DealBook)
Wealthier people are more musical. (Guardian)
Most people who burn out don’t do so as a result of work. (Inc)
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