Goldman Dealmaker, Yoel Zaoui, Leaves The Firm After 24 Years

Another Goldmanite bites the dust.

Yoel Zaoui, co-head of the firm’s global mergers and acquisitions group, is leaving Goldman Sachs after more than two decades at the firm, according to an internal memo obtained by Reuters.

Zaouie is credited with having advised on a number of major deals during his 24 years at the bank. Among them, Mittal Steel's hostile 2006 takeover of competitor steel and mining company Arcelor, and a 2004 deal that created the French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi, Bloomberg notes.

Zaoie’s departure comes amidst a broader Goldman exodus. Just under a month ago, London-based Goldman executive Greg Smith publicly announced his resignation from the company in a now-infamous New York Times op-ed. In it, Smith lamented the rise of what he described as a "toxic and destructive" culture at the firm.

Smith and Zaoie are far from the only Goldmanites to depart. Last year, a full fifty partners left Goldman Sachs, and two long-standing heads of the firm’s securities trading division already left in January, according to The New York Times.

Nor is Goldman alone in suffering defections from its top ranks. In early March, JPMorgan Chase watched its global head of proprietary trading leave to start a hedge fund. That move came as JPMorgan prepared to permanently shutter its proprietary trading operation in response to new restrictions from the Volker rule, which stricly limits the sort of bets a bank can make with its own money.

Comments

[fourstake]

03:04 PM on 04/12/2012

I'm still amazed that someone/anyone in the field of investigational journalism hasn't been able to connect the dots between what is taking place at Goldman and JP Morgan and the Euro Debt issue. These executives aren't leaving because they want to, they're leaving to avoid criminal prosecution and testimony. Even worse is that the FBI has refused to take any role in this matter, allowing these individuals to "move on" in hopes of distancing US financial institutions from the economic mess taking place in Europe. The IMF, ECB and other European agencies are just now beginning to see the damaging effects placed on the Euro through "services" provided to governments by Goldman and JP Morgan. In the case of Greece, Goldman was paid $300M to hide it's sky rocketing debt which allowed the country to borrow even more at lower rates. They did this using the same tools that helped sink the US economy - credit default swaps, derivatives, collateralized debt obligations etc etc. The same thing happened in Italy and several other countries. The irony is that even though those individuals who worked with Goldman and JP Morgan were removed, they were replaced by individuals who have direct ties Goldman and JP Morgan as either a consultant to them or former employee.

[RobertHenryEller]

08:46 AM on 04/12/2012

Before anyone looks to how many GS partners are leaving this year, check on the lists of retirements and defections in any one year.

As well, reasons for leaving cannot be construed just from leaving. Even stated reasons for leaving may not tell the whole story for any individual partner.

Further, consider that there are plenty of others ready, willing and eager (to say the least) to take the places of the departed.

Top b-schools are crawling with candidates.

Investment bankers are not an endangered species. Neither are investment banks like Goldman.

Goldman is Nature's most highly evolved organism. Up until now, virtually all organisms were subject to changed in their environment. Goldman has largely figured out how to control its environment to suit the organism.

[DiogenesOfAlaska]

06:18 AM on 04/12/2012

"Zaoie’s departure comes amidst a broader Goldman exodus." May they find wisdom at Sinai.

"Nor is Goldman alone in suffering defections from its top ranks." At long last, we find some evidence that maybe there actually IS such a thing as a market place for "talent". Because as long as people don't change firm and their job descriptions and salaries aren't subject to public information and even scrutiny - where's the market place? To wit, it's probably nonsensical to discuss these job changes and salaries in public. But that only goes to show that banks and financial institutions and C-suites should stop making the absurd claim that there is such a thing as a market place for talent. There isn't, because it's a contradiction in terms.

"...new restrictions from the Volker rule, which stricly limits the sort of bets a bank can make with its own money." Bad terminology. Yes, they are bets with the banks own money, but they are lucrative only because they employ leverage (the trader's option) which is NOT the banks' own. Currently, in a net view, it's often the central banks' own.

[novelist2000]

12:48 AM on 04/12/2012

... 'in response to new restrictions from the Volker rule, which stricly limits the sort of bets a bank can make with its own money.' There used to be a rule in good families to not marry a man who went to the betting shop or race track.

There is probably more to come, because Wall Street used to manage 75 % of world capital and that would have gradually reduced and will reduce further.

[Matt12]

05:09 PM on 04/11/2012

Another Yoel leaves GS! The whole of these crooks should be in jail!!!!!~

[sf1000000]

04:42 PM on 04/11/2012

What we should be asking, is, " Why hasn't congress enacted any laws to protect us from another melt down"..." what laws have they put in place? What about Dodd Frank? Glass Stegall? Why has congress busted the banks UP so they are NOT to big to fail..just big enough to fail with out pulling us all down again. What about Credit Default Swaps? Have they been out lawed yet like they where in 1907 ?? If so why not?
Has Congress given money to justice to hire more attys and CPA's to investigate these birds? What about the IRS and SEC have they been beefed Up to go after these birds..
In short, What the hell as congress done since the Melt down?

[xjrix]

10:22 PM on 04/11/2012

We already know why congress hasn't done anything. They are complicit.

[woody7]

04:11 PM on 04/11/2012

awe gee............................................................

[Chubbster]

01:49 PM on 04/11/2012

Another man with a funny name.

[aforbes808]

01:22 PM on 04/11/2012

It's all about the GOLD. MAN be damned. Pax.

[koos458]

12:37 PM on 04/11/2012

Goldmanite, a type of sociopathic sodomite.

[Jen Celli]

12:34 PM on 04/11/2012

Rats know when it's time to jump ship. It's the bubonic plague, Lloyd; time to pull anchor.

[fortressfountain]

12:24 PM on 04/11/2012

Maybe he is retiring on a fat check he stole from his employees and customers. Wow, these people cannot earn money in any new innovative way. Just suck people into high interest debt. No wonder their is no confidence.

[scndchnchtr]

11:55 AM on 04/11/2012

These guys will eventually end up back together and starting a new company.

[american-dolt]

11:47 AM on 04/11/2012

Too bad, 25 years and he could have gotten the Gold Watch.

[jkkFL]

04:36 PM on 04/11/2012

Which would probably turn his wrist green in a week!

[imusintheevening]

10:25 AM on 04/11/2012

Hedge funds are where it's at now.

He will be raking in more money than he did at GS in a matter of months.