David Solomon on private equity
From Goldman Sachs Group Inc ($GS) Q1 2026 Earnings Call · · Castify Earnings Call
“I think one of the reasons why the private equity firms have been slower to monetize is the economic incentives that are set up give them the optionality to wait and we had a dynamic where values and private equity portfolios got marked up meaningfully in 2020 and 2021 because of that cycle and making no comment on where they're marked it raised expectations around monetization and people are waiting and by the way as the economy grows the world grows a lot of these businesses do grow into those valuations and the way the incentive system works they really really the only optionality LPs have to put pressure on GPs is to not participate in the next fund.”
On , David Solomon, Chairman & CEO at Goldman Sachs Group Inc, spoke about private equity during Goldman Sachs Group Inc ($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.