Is Wall Street really being fundamentally restructured? Will the industry now look all that different from the industry that existed about five years ago? Maybe not. At a Bloomberg News event, several executives suggested that the industry will look a lot like it did before it overextended itself in the mortgage-driven business.

Perhaps a handful of banks will emerge as clear victors; they will likely be full-service banks, all too reminiscent of the supermarkets that fell out of vogue. JPMorgan seems to fit the bill. Goldman Sachs would be very close but for the lack of retail presence. The difference between the future and the recent past might also be a reduction in proprietary risks. Again, JPMorgan looks to be the early model. Goldman Sachs, if its last quarter is any indication, seems like it will remain disposed to really leveraging its balance sheet.   

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