Goldman Doubles David Solomon’s Pay to $35 Million

In October 2020, Goldman agreed to pay nearly $3 billion to government officials in four countries to end an investigation into work it performed for 1MDB, a Malaysian fund that prosecutors had alleged was used to pay bribes to politicians in Malaysia and the Middle East. The bank said at the time that it would take a total of $174 million in compensation from current and former executives.

Mr. Solomon’s 2021 pay package consisted of a $2 million base salary, a cash bonus of about $10 million and a $23.1 million stock award that is tied to how well the bank performs in the next few years.

Mr. Solomon got a one-time stock award of about $30 million in October. The award, the bank said at the time, was designed to keep him atop the firm and a nod to “the rapidly increasing war for talent in the current environment.”

Higher compensation expenses across the board sent Goldman’s fourth-quarter profit down after a string of big gains. The bank’s compensation spending rose $4.4 billion in 2021. Still, the bank generated record revenue and profit for the year, and its return on equity, a measure of how profitably it uses shareholder money, was at its highest level since 2007.

Other banks recently rewarded executives for strong results. Morgan Stanley awarded CEO James Gorman $35 million in 2021 compensation, a 6% increase. JPMorgan Chase & Co. paid CEO Jamie Dimon $34.5 million for his work last year, up from $31.5 million in 2020.

Write to Charley Grant at [email protected]