From the WSJ's Deal Journal:
I see London, I see France, I see Lloyd Blankfein without his underpants.
Or so says Greg Smith, the former Goldman Sachs Group Inc. GS +0.18% equity derivatives salesman, in his forthcoming book, “Why I Left Goldman Sachs: A Wall Street Story.”
Photocopies of parts of the highly anticipated book–and
photocopies of the photocopies–are circulating on Wall Street despite
Grand Central Publishing’s attempt to keep the contents under lockdown
until Monday’s official release date.
Mr. Smith is expected to appear on “60 Minutes” on Sunday night, and then do a blitz of media appearances next week.
Mr. Smith quit Goldman in March, the same day his scathing op-ed
appeared in the New York Times. He reportedly got $1.5 million to write a
book expanding on the article, which accused Goldman of losing its way,
devolving into a culture of toxic greed and self-dealing.
Inside Goldman, executives are mostly relieved by what they’ve read, though some of Mr. Smith’s recollections are cringe-worthy.
The book mostly chronicles his life as a Goldman employee, rather
than airing any particularly explosive allegations. And it reads more
like a diary than an expose.
Here are a few examples:
Brushes with Goldman Greatness
Mr. Smith outlines moments when he came into close contact with
Goldman’s chairman and chief executive, according to pages reviewed by
The Wall Street Journal.
Mr. Smith tells of one near-encounter when he saw Mr. Blankfein, sans
clothes, after taking a shower at the gym. Mr. Blankfein was
“air-drying,” Mr. Smith writes, something Mr. Smith took not as a
display of power but as something men of an older generation tend to do.
Another up-close-and-personal moment with the big boss came when Mr. Blankfein and Berkshire Hathaway Inc. Chief Executive Warren Buffett walked through the Goldman trading floor the day after Mr. Buffett’s $5 billion investment as Goldman was reeling in 2008.
In the book, Mr. Smith says he a co-worker snap a photo as he stood near Mr. Buffett.
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