Will he or won’t he? Or rather, when will he?
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Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein
Those are the questions being posed by an array of Goldman Sachs watchers these days, as speculation swirls on the length of Lloyd Blankfein’s tenure as chief executive.
Blankfein, 56, assumed the post in June 2006—meaning that in about a month’s time, he will have hit the five-year mark as CEO. Recent Goldman heads have lasted anywhere from a decade to two years, but at least five years seems to be a safe bet.
And for much of those five years, it’s been pretty rough going. Less than two years after his ascension, Blankfein was thrust into the worst financial crisis in recent memory—and had to hastily alter the firm’s corporate structure and accept bailout money from both Warren Buffett and the U.S. Treasury in order to stay afloat amid investor panic. But steer Goldman through that crisis Blankfein did, and the firm is again regarded as the franchise to beat on Wall Street. » Read More
