Goldman Sachs raises junior banker pay, aligning with rivals

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Credit Suisse Group AG are joining rivals in bumping pay for junior bankers, following uproar earlier in the year over the work-till-you-drop culture exposed by the pandemic.

Goldman Sachs will now pay first-year analysts at least $110,000 up from $85,000, according to people familiar with the matter. Their second-year counterparts will get $125,000 up from $95,000 while first-year associates will go to $150,000, the people said, asking not to be identified discussing a private matter.

The bank’s new pay for staff starting out in the industry is well ahead of its big bank peers, which centered around a $100,000 figure as they sought to stem defections amid intense workloads. Credit Suisse is considering increasing starting salaries for first-year analysts to six figures, though executives are still evaluating pay and no changes are official yet, separate people familiar with the matter said. Second and third-year analysts at the Swiss lender could be bumped to $105,000 and $110,000, respectively, according to an earlier Financial News report.

The uproar was sparked by a group of 13 first-year analysts in Goldman Sachs’ investment-banking division who laid bare the rigors of Wall Street life in a presentation detailing one hundred-hour work weeks and strains on health. In the aftermath, Morgan Stanley, Citigroup Inc., Deutsche Bank AG and JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased starting wages for junior banking employees to $100,000 to ease the pressures.

Goldman Sachs’ Chief Executive Officer David Solomon had said the bank has a pay for performance culture and total compensation for the junior bankers will reflect the strong performance in the banking group.

For its part, Credit Suisse, like many others, had given its junior investment bankers a one time bonus of $20,000 earlier this year.

“Credit Suisse, like all banks, places an emphasis on recruiting and retaining talent in every market, as our people and the recruitment of top talent are central to our business. As such, we continue to monitor market activity and continue to offer competitive salaries and benefits to existing employees as well as new recruits,” Sarah Mac Rory, a spokesperson for Credit Suisse, said in an emailed statement.