Goldman Sachs equity prop traders courted by big-name firms

Members of the Goldman Sachs' Principal Strategies equity unit are apparently in heavy demand right now. The likes of Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, Perella Weinberg and BlackRock are said to be interested in hiring the traders as a unit of a dozen traders.

Proprietary trading recently has accounted for about 10 percent of revenue at Goldman, reports Reuters. But this type of activity tends to be fairly high-margin, so such trading likely accounts for an even higher percentage of profits. Of course, it's doubtful that equity traders are the main drivers of proprietary profits. The bond traders are likely more profitable.

It would be interesting to know how each potential employer would want to deploy the equity group. You could obviously see them as pure prop traders. But you could also envision a firm wanting to use the team to draw client money. Such a fund would be eminently marketable.

It's unclear if any hedge funds are interested in the group, or if the group is interested in working for a hedge fund. Many people all along thought the Volcker Rule would free up some talent for alternative investment funds. You get the feeling that we'll hear some news soon.

For more:
- here's a Reuters article

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