Hot on Facebook

Guy Buys $123 Safe on eBay, Finds $26,000 Inside Seller tries to get half the cash back, fails »

Former Exec Rails on Paydays

By J. Kelman, Newser User

Posted May 17, 2007 2:22 PM CDT

(Newser) – Former Goldman Sachs chairman John Whitehead is appalled by Wall Street's salary binge, and he wants his ex-employer to snap out of it. In an ornery interview with Bloomberg News, Whitehead, who ran the company from 1976 to 1984, says hedge funds sparked the rush toward obscene paydays but Goldman is now the "leader in this outrageous increase.''

Whitehead, who now runs Goldman's foundation, suggests a tough love approach: cut salaries and let the chips fall. "I would take the chance of losing a lot of them and let them see what happens when the hedge fund bubble ends,” Whitehead told Bloomberg. Goldman's CEO Lloyd Blankfein pulled in $54 million last year.

[Images (2)]

[Videos (1)]

International Memorial Design Competition Announced in New York City (Getty Images)

Record Earnings Lead To Big Bonuses On Wall Street (Getty Images)

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

Bonus Time On Wall Street (CBS (YouTube))

View larger videos >>

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next »

To report an error on this story, notify our editors.

More Newser Stories

Wall Street Bonuses To Sink

Market crisis hits paychecks

(NEWSER) - The credit crisis, which has surged across the global financial infrastructure like a tsunami, washing away millions of share prices, is about to hit one of Wall Street's most hallowed traditions —the fat bonus. The extra pay for all but an elite few may be cut for the first time in five years, Bloomberg reports. More»

SEC Letting Big Banks Skirt Fraud Penalties

'New York Times' analysis finds 350 instances of banks getting free passes

(NEWSER) - The Securities and Exchange Commission has repeatedly allowed Wall Street's biggest banks to avoid penalties specifically intended to punish and deter fraud, a New York Times analysis of SEC records reveals. Over the past decade, the SEC has on almost 350 occasions granted waivers exempting big financial companies from sanctions, allowing banks like Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan to continue to enjoy advantages, like protection from shareholder lawsuits, that are supposed to be reserved for the most dependable companies. More»

Wall Street Bonuses to Plummet

Falling revenues behind expected 40% plunge

(NEWSER) - The latest news from Wall Street is likely to leave most ordinary Americans dry-eyed. Year-end bonuses for bankers and traders are expected to be down sharply this year, plunging up to 40% to their lowest level since the financial crisis, according to a closely watched industry forecast. A bond trader who is also a managing director at a top securities firm would have received a bonus of some $2.9 million last year, but will have to make do with $1.8 million this year, the Wall Street Journal reports. More»

MF Global Ignored Warnings, Couldn't Match Shoes

Jon Corzine thought regulators' warnings were wrong

(NEWSER) - Those interested in the bankruptcy of MF Global—the biggest Wall Street collapse since Lehman—will be fascinated and maybe a little depressed to read the New York Times ' look at what went wrong. The big takeaway is that the brokerage company run by Jon Corzine ignored regulators' warnings (or tried to, anyway) that it was getting into deep trouble by betting on European debt without having enough capital on hand. It shows that "three years after the financial crisis, Wall Street executives are still fighting regulators' demands," write the Times' reporters. More»

Ex-Goldman Exec Charged With Fraud

Rajat Gupta accused of leaking info to Galleon director

(NEWSER) - Former Goldman Sachs director Rajat Gupta surrendered to federal authorities today to face charges related to insider trading, the AP reports. Gupta appeared in Manhattan federal court and was charged with one count of conspiracy to commit securities fraud and five counts of securities fraud. The longtime McKinsey & Company chief is accused of providing insider information to Galleon Group founder Raj Rajaratnam, according to the Wall Street Journal . Rajaratnam has already received his own 11-year sentence for insider trading . More»

NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS

What is Newser?

Face it: there's too much news. At Newser, we choose the most thought-provoking and entertaining stories from hundreds of US and international sources and reduce them to a headline, picture, and two paragraphs. And we do it 24/7—you can come back morning, noon, night (and in between) for something new that matters. Read less, know more.

Learn more »

Partnering with: Slate

View Newser on the mobile website