Goldman Sachs COO John Waldron could become the investment banking giant’s next leader, and he is talking up his banking customers’ considerable demand for bitcoin (BTC).
Waldron is working on BTC-related services that he hopes will help the firm capitalize on a new regulatory regime that has seen restrictions on digital asset-supporting financial institutions lifted.
Waldron wants Goldman Sachs to engage in the sector like never before. For example, the bank recently restarted its digital asset trading desk, and in early March, his team of crypto traders started dealing in BTC futures and non-deliverable forwards.
A source familiar with the matter said that the firm was also looking into other blockchain-based projects and central bank digital currencies (CBDCs).
Waldron has been floated as a strong candidate to replace David Solomon as Goldman Sachs’ CEO. He previously turned down a lucrative opportunity to join Apollo Global Management, opting to remain at Goldman Sachs in exchange for an $80 million retention bonus, a board seat, and increased access to the bank’s private plane.
“It’s John Waldron’s to lose,” Wells Fargo’s Mike Mayo said about his potential future position.
Read more: Donald Trump’s crypto executive order doesn’t mention Bitcoin
Waldron hoping for success after Sachs’ imperfect track record
Sachs has, however, had its share of misses in new industries. A previous dive into retail banking led to $3 billion in pre-tax losses before the bank finally pulled the plug in 2022. Famously, it was also embroiled in a Malaysian corruption scandal, 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), which led to a $3.9 billion settlement with the Malaysian government and a slashing of Solomon and Waldron’s salaries.
Waldron’s current concern about staying compliant with regulations as Goldman Sachs dives into another new industry could stem from that 1MDB incident.
In 2021, Waldron mentioned that Goldman Sachs was holding discussions with regulators and central banks on ways in which banks could incorporate “digital money” in a regulatory-compliant fashion.
Even when he doesn’t directly name specific digital assets, he’s discussed Alternative Asset Management with college students and has held conversations on “contrarian positions” with senior executives of other investment firms like Soros Fund Management.
