Goldman Sachs to Lay Off up to 4,000

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. will lay off up to 4,000 people as the Wall Street bank struggles to meet profitability targets, news platform Semafor reported Friday, citing people familiar with the matter.

Managers across the firm have been asked to identify low performers for what could be a cut of up to 8% to its workforce early next year, the people said, with some cautioning that no final list has been drawn up, according to the report.

The layoffs are the latest sign that cuts are accelerating across Wall Street.

The bank said in September it was planning to cut up to 400 jobs, after pausing the annual practice for two years during the pandemic, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters at the time.

The Wall Street bank had 49,100 employees at the end of the third quarter this year, after adding significant numbers of staff during the pandemic. Headcount will remain above pre-pandemic levels, which stood at 38,300 at the end of 2019, the source said.

The latest plan would include hundreds of employees being cut from the consumer business, the source said. Goldman signaled it was scaling back its ambitions for Marcus, the loss-making consumer unit, in October.

Goldman Sachs plans to stop originating unsecured consumer loans, a source familiar with the move told Reuters earlier this week, another sign the bank was stepping back from the consumer business.

The latest job cut plans come after Goldman cut about 500 employees in September, after pausing the annual practice for two years during the pandemic, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters at the time.

The investment bank had first warned in July that it might slow hiring and cut expenses.

Global banks, including Morgan Stanley and Citigroup Inc, have reduced their workforce in recent months as a dealmaking boom on Wall Street has fizzled out due to high interest rates and soaring inflation.

Investment banks had a blockbuster 2021, but have seen fewer deals this year as companies halted buyouts and listings as interest rates rose. Tensions between the United States and China and the war between Russia and Ukraine also spurred market volatility and weighed on investment banking activity.

Goldman declined to comment.