Goldman Pay Plan Gets 'F' Grade as Investors Told to Vote No

Despite Goldman receiving the same grade last year, Glass Lewis had recommended shareholders sign off on the pay plan then.

The board lifted Solomon’s pay as the firm spent much of the past year dousing internal rifts and pitching investors on a simplified strategy. After giving up on its retail-banking ambitions, New York-based Goldman has returned its focus to business lines embraced by Solomon’s predecessors.

Goldman’s compensation committee cited the CEO’s “decisive leadership in recognizing the need to clarify and simplify the firm’s forward strategy,” according to a February filing.

That reasoning drew private gripes from other Goldman executives, who pointed out that the firm was pulling back from a poorly executed retail-banking plan that the CEO had embraced over internal opposition.

The recommendation to vote down the pay proposal comes ahead of the bank’s annual meeting on April 24, where it’s seeking shareholder approval of executive pay.

(Credit: Bloomberg)