Aria Thomas
Sep 14, 2022 10:34
When compared to Goldman Sachs, where hundreds of layoffs could start as early as this month, JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America (NYSE:BAC), the two largest U.S. banks by assets, expressed caution regarding job losses.
In contrast, "in some environments like this, it is possible to hire some very, very elite bankers who were previously unavailable to you," JPMorgan (NYSE:JPM) president and COO Daniel Pinto warned investors on Tuesday. "You need to be extremely careful when you have a bit of a slump to start reducing bankers here and there because you will impair the opportunity for growth moving forward."
According to a source with knowledge of the matter, Goldman Sachs Group Inc (NYSE:GS) plans to start laying off employees as soon as this month after delaying them for two years because of the pandemic. At the end of the second quarter, Goldman had 47,000 employees, up 15% from the previous year.
Financial professionals on Wall Street are starting to worry about possible job layoffs in the coming months. As the Federal Reserve hiked interest rates to fight inflation and the likelihood of a recession rose, markets for negotiating agreements dried up.
Lance Roberts, chief investment strategist and economist at RIA Advisors, claims that JPMorgan's approach to its employees is driven by the company's upbeat outlook.
Roberts stated that "we will see if JPMorgan is true in their more optimistic estimates" and added that "if history is any indication, the prognosis is more dismal with a risk of heavy rain."
The CEO of Bank of America said on Monday that despite a decline in investment banking, the company is content with the number of employees it now has.
In an interview with Fox News, Moynihan declared, "We're fine with our headcount." If people leave to work for rival companies, we might not be able to fill every vacancy, but overall I think we're doing okay.
Bank President Pinto stated that due to "far increased" attrition in the first half of the year, JPMorgan had to make wage modifications. He claims that even though attrition is still high, it is becoming more common. Over 278,000 people were employed by the bank at the end of the second quarter, a rise of 7% from the previous quarter.
Nobody at Citigroup (NYSE:C) would comment on the job cuts.
Ken Moelis, the CEO of Moelis (NYSE:MC) & Co., told Reuters in July that the investment bank has a strong pipeline of possible new hires and plans to quickly grow its workforce.
The boutique investment bank on Tuesday appointed Igor Sokolovsky, formerly of Guggenheim Securities, as a managing director in New York. On healthcare mergers and acquisitions, he will concentrate.
Large banks "get the word right around Labor Day to look at your headcount in a bad year," according to Moelis at the time. "That's how the cycle runs," they added.
Sep 14, 2022 10:35