Goldman Sachs is catching fresh heat over massive bonuses it has pledged to CEO David Solomon and his No. 2 executive John Waldron — with powerful shareholder voting advisors slamming the payouts as “excessive” and “poor practice.”
A pair of so-called proxy advisory firms, which counsel investors on how to vote at the annual meetings of big public companies, ripped an $80 million retention bonus for 63-year-old Solomon — a lavish sum that sparked outrage among the rank and file when the bank revealed it in late January.
Goldman also is handing out an $80 million retention bonus to John Waldron, the Wall Street giant’s 55-year-old operating chief who recently has become the reported frontrunner to eventually succeed Solomon, according to securities filings.
In a report published late on Monday, Institutional Shareholder Services called the payouts “poor practice,” griping that the proposed packages “lack rigorous, pre-set performance criteria, which is particularly concerning for off-cycle awards with such large values.”
In the note to clients, ISS called on shareholders to vote against the lavish bonuses at Goldman’s April shareholder meeting, citing the “magnitude and structure” of the golden handcuffs payments that will fully vest in five years.
ISS’s attack followed a similar broadside from influential proxy adviser Glass Lewis on Friday, which ripped Goldman over its “continued inability to align pay with performance.”
The problem is “exacerbated by the decision to grant excessive retention awards to Messrs. Solomon and Waldron just following the end of the fiscal year,” Glass Lewis wrote in its own report.
“The provided discussion regarding the rationale in the proxy statement is far from robust,” the firm added.
The eye-popping sums, subject to being signed off by the bank’s compensation committee, were seen as a play to keep Solomon and Waldron with the firm.
Last month, the Financial Times reported that Waldron was eyeing a $500 million job in private equity with Marc Rowan’s Apollo Global Management.
Defenders of the payouts have likewise pointed to Goldman’s surging profits, lately fueled by a rebound in trading, which have sent its share price rocketing by more than 30% over the past year.
A Goldman Sachs spokesperson noted that the awards will come entirely in the form of company stock.
“Competition for our talent is fierce. The Board took action to retain our current leadership team, to sustain our firm’s momentum and maintain a strong succession plan,” a Goldman Sachs spokesperson told The Post. “A 100% stock-based grant is fully aligned with long-term shareholder value creation.”
Last year, in his annual letter to shareholders, JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon — who in 2021 was awarded a $50 million retention bonus that vests next year — slammed both firms for wielding “undue influence” and suggested that their voting recommendations were biased.
There was also further controversy at Goldman on Friday when Business Insider reported on how the bank was planning to hire a corporate aviation associate to organize executive private jet travel.
The post will see the lucky candidate rake in up to $160,000 a year for managing the schedule of the bank’s two Gulfstream jets, which The Post has dubbed Air Force Sol.
“Goldman Sachs appreciates the help recruiting top talent for this job, in yet another New York Post article about our corporate aviation,” the Goldman Sachs spokesperson ranted.
“The fact that Goldman needs a full-time employee to manage its fleet of private aircraft is another testament to the expansive reach of Goldman’s executives,” said Luke Perlot of the National Legal and Policy Center, a right-leaning corporate activist group. “We still think the private aircraft are a waste of shareholder resources.”
The jets include a larger Gulfstream G650 ER that is mainly used by Solomon and a G280 that is usually used by Waldron.
Their two call signs — N650WS and N280WS — are a nod to Wall Street and the firm’s 200 West Street headquarters in downtown Manhattan.
A Post analysis of private tracking data shows that the company’s aircraft flew to the Bahamas as many as 29 times in 2023 and 2024.
Most of the flights to the Bahamas took place at weekends or around holiday periods, the data shows
The tropical archipelago is where Solomon has a beachside residence in the luxury 600-acre Bakers Bay development on the tiny island of Great Guana Cay, just an eight-mile boat ride from Marsh Harbour.
“I guess he was just working from home,” joked one Goldman Sachs staffer in a thinly veiled swipe at Solomon’s renowned opposition to remote working.
