Market Currents

"I can honestly say the environment now is as toxic and destructive as I have ever seen it,"...

Wednesday, March 14, 2012, 7:26 AM ET
"I can honestly say the environment now is as toxic and destructive as I have ever seen it," writes Greg Smith, leaving Goldman Sachs (GS) today after nearly 12 years (and after bonus season?). "The interests of the client continue to be sidelined ... (I) see virtually no trace of the culture that made me love working for this firm."

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This news story has 23 comments:

davidingeorgia Comments (2713)

Book deal in the works?

14 Mar 2012, 07:35 AM Reply Like

rjj1960 Comments (1049)

There is one aspect of the Giant Squid that must be admired. They simply never get tired of filling their pockets,and they never quit steamrolling anyone and everyone for a dollar. GS simply is the most evil company on the planet. Society looks at the coal industry or the oil sands pointing fingers, please.....Hey Sierra Club, maybe start with GS and all the other wall street firms that put their self interests first.

14 Mar 2012, 07:39 AM Reply Like

Gregor_MacGregor Comments (79)

as opposed to putting someone else's interest first?! What company does that? Their goal is to make money and that's all they do...they don't claim to make toys for kids or medication for the sick. That said, the way they go about their business does make me want to see them crash and burn.

14 Mar 2012, 07:46 AM Reply Like

WMARKW Comments (8560)

They day that Goldman Suchs and JPM tank is the day I go all in long on the market.

14 Mar 2012, 09:57 AM Reply Like

Michael Filighera Comments (446)

WMark - I would add that CNBC goes off the air -- the WSJ is sold and returned to being a balanced "real" financial news source. But your comment made me smile on this grey rainy day in the SF Bay Area.

14 Mar 2012, 11:11 AM Reply Like

phoneranger Comments (340)

Somewhere I heard it said that "Corporations are people, my friend". True dat. Some corps are lean and fit while others are fat and lazy. Wall Street does a pretty good job of disciplining companies with weight problems. OTOH some corps are mensches while others are pricks. Sadly you never see a company downgraded because it's a greedy SOB. Au contraire, nice corps finish last.

14 Mar 2012, 08:26 AM Reply Like

slard271 Comments (61)

"What are three quick ways to become a leader? a) Execute on the firm’s “axes,” which is Goldman-speak for persuading your clients to invest in the stocks or other products that we are trying to get rid of because they are not seen as having a lot of potential profit."

Buy stocks!

14 Mar 2012, 08:56 AM Reply Like

benfromchicago2689 Comments (44)

I have no problem with Goldman making money. I have huge problem with Goldman conducting client business as well as being a hedge fund. It is like going to a blackjact table that the dealer can see your cards. How many time I have seen them frontrunning a client's order. I have seldom seen people making money trading against them.

Worse, they have the balls to tell that they don't owe anybody for their survival of 2008 financial crisis. Let's be serious. Without the full support of the Fed, even smart guys like Goldman would be wiped out by the bank run. But if you listen to Gary Cohn, they treat the hand that saved them with contempt.

I guess it is good to be the master of universe. You can get so arrogant that you think you can outwit the whole world.

14 Mar 2012, 09:09 AM Reply Like

dixie Comments (274)

What should scare most Americans is that former Goldman execs (steeped in GS culture) permeate the echelons of US Treasury and the Federal Reserve. Having those who lack morality oversee the financial affairs of government is freightening.

14 Mar 2012, 09:42 AM Reply Like

kwm3 Comments (2108)

And they lack competence, intelligence and insight too. They couldn't even see this depression coming, whereas the smart guys sure could--Paulson and a bunch of others made fortunes from the collapse.

14 Mar 2012, 11:37 AM Reply Like

Poor Texan Comments (3499)

"Having those who lack morality oversee the financial affairs of government is frightening."

It seems like acting morally is considered politically incorrect. And it seems to be in all phases of what used to be our culture. "Love thy neighbor" and "do no harm" are seldom spoken and seldom observed. What's legal is not always what is right.

14 Mar 2012, 02:12 PM Reply Like

Vlad77 Comments (141)

Very true, interning at JPM I saw the same

14 Mar 2012, 09:15 AM Reply Like

bricki Comments (1097)

Since when did any investment bank worry about the concerns of the client?

14 Mar 2012, 10:26 AM Reply Like

Lorenzo8 Comments (12)

Exactly. These kind of "conversions" usually happen when somebody misses a promotion and is marginalized in the company ladder.

14 Mar 2012, 12:56 PM Reply Like

surfnspy Comments (415)

+1 - I thought the same thing.

14 Mar 2012, 05:18 PM Reply Like

Bill913 Comments (22)

I have the same level of confidence in brokerage firms as I do in the federal government. That's why I read SA and do my own (read take responsibility for) investing.

14 Mar 2012, 10:54 AM Reply Like