It's been a long held adage that if you cut bankers' salaries, they'll go elsewhere.
But for top firms -- actually, one top firm -- that may not be the case. For Goldman Sachs, the thinking is if you don't feel like you're getting enough, pretty much the only place to go is down.
In 2007, the proportion of profits paid out to employees by Goldman was 53%. For 2009, the payout ratio was 46%. James Kwak believes that such a trajectory can only be a good thing; Goldman could end up in the 30%-40% range if this year's drop wasn't just a publicity stunt.
Barron's speculates that the reason for so many of these bankers' success derives mostly from the Goldman name, not their individual skills and talent.
If that's the case, then staying at Goldman, despite a decreased compensation pool, may make the most sense.
Write to Julie Steinberg