David Solomon on private credit
From Goldman Sachs Group Inc ($GS) Q1 2026 Earnings Call · · Castify Earnings Call
“I know the media headlines have driven, you know, an enormous amount of negative sentiment around private credit. You know, my own view is it's important to really distinguish between different markets and really try to put it all in perspective. You know, I think you guys know this that there, you know, private credit and the broadest definition you could possibly come up with is about $ three and a half trillion dollars of assets. But the thing that's been getting a lot of focus is direct lending and direct lending is about 1.6 to 1.7 trillion dollars of assets of which the retail channel for that direct lending business is about 20% or about $230 billion of NAD.”
On , David Solomon, Chairman & CEO at Goldman Sachs Group Inc, spoke about private credit during Goldman Sachs Group Inc ($GS) Q1 2026 Earnings Call on Castify Earnings Call.
About David Solomon
David Solomon, chairman and CEO of Goldman Sachs, has been speaking publicly about artificial intelligence, market conditions, and the state of the global economy. In a June 2026 interview on the Odd Lots podcast, Solomon said he is "hugely, hugely optimistic" about AI's potential to create productivity gains at large enterprises like Goldman Sachs, but also emphasized that "human to human contact matters a lot" and that interpersonal skills will become more valuable. He argued that the current regulatory and market structure has made it "unattractive to go public until you have to," and that companies like Alphabet are now issuing equity because they have "capital needs that are so voracious" that relying solely on private markets is not prudent. Speaking at the Economic Club of New York, Solomon stated that markets are "in a moment where there's more greed than there is fear," and that there is sufficient liquidity to absorb large equity offerings. In a May 2026 conversation with former NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and NBIM CEO Nicolai Tangen, Solomon discussed the widening economic gap between Europe and the United States, attributing it to Europe's 0.7% trend growth versus the US's 2% trend growth, which he said will continue to compound unless Europe changes its approach. He described himself as a "huge optimist" about long-term global growth. In his commencement speech to the Wharton MBA Class of 2026, Solomon urged graduates to "be open to change," "show up when it matters," and "invest in your relationships," while also defending his decision to continue DJing despite criticism, saying it "enriches my life and it's kept me grounded in turbulent times." He noted that Goldman Sachs recently reported its "second best revenue" and earnings ever, though the stock declined on the news, which he attributed to geopolitical uncertainty.