The media has been having a field day on the topic of David Solomon’s tenure atop Goldman Sachs, thanks in large part to the restless unnamed Goldman partners and other executives who seem to have it in for the guy. From the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, and the New York Post, to another Economist cover, to the august Financial Times, and Insider, speculation is rife about Solomon. There have been stories about how John Waldron, Solomon’s No. 2, will take over for him. Or that Richard Gnodde, the C.E.O. of Goldman’s international operations, might step in. Or that Steve Scherr, the bank’s former C.F.O. and current C.E.O. of Hertz, would return as the head of Goldman. Then there is the insane idea, recently socialized in Jimmy Finkelstein’s The Messenger, that Goldman might return to the days when it was a partnership and appoint two men to lead the firm together, as it was run during the eras of Bob Rubin and Steve Friedman, or even John Whitehead and John Weinberg. 

So, yes, at the moment, there’s been a lot of smoke coming out of 200 West Street. But is there any actual fire? I’m thinking not, to be honest. Waldron is too close to Solomon to be disloyal. Gnodde is a proper, older, less charismatic banker, a safe pair of hands, but unlikely to get the troops excited. Scherr was well-liked in his days as the Goldman C.F.O. but he has a potential payout of $178 million at Hertz if he sticks around until 2026 and certain stock price targets are met. And return trips to Goldman are rare indeed (with the notable exception of Dina Powell McCormick, who has since departed the firm again). And that idea of co-C.E.O.s of Goldman Sachs, the publicly traded corporation, is not only unfathomable, it’s simply not going to happen.