Jefferies’ Goldman raid ignites analyst war
Jefferies' poaching of a veteran banking analyst from Goldman Sachs shows their Wall St rivalry has well and truly arrived in Australia — and it's massively boosting pay packets for the lucky targets.
The shock poaching of Goldman Sachs’ veteran banking analyst Andrew Lyons by Jefferies is the latest in a concerted series of raids by the relative Wall St newcomer on its venerable rival and increasingly bitter competitor.
In Australia, we've not only seen a handful of such scalps over the last six months but also a massive boost in pay packets. Among bank analysts, it could even signal the first quantum pay inflation since their ranks were upended more than a decade ago.
Lyons was a managing director with 10 years-plus at Goldmans, and industry sources reckon his deal at Jefferies is a “2x2” — $2 million guaranteed for two years. Lyons will also forgo his Goldman bonus, which is typically paid in January. And notably, Jefferies already has a highly rated bank analyst, Matt Wilson.
A two-headed senior team is not unheard of — James Ellis and Jarrod Martin tag-teamed at Credit Suisse and Mike Macrow and Craig Williams did the same at Citi — but it’s unusual. Carlos Cacho jumped ship from Jarden to Macquarie Research in June and it remains to be seen how the move fits with incumbent Victor German.
