Wall Street

Goldman Changes Compensation Plan

Drops cash bonuses for top 30 execs.

Cash bonuses are so last year for the leaders of Goldman Sachs. The investment firm announced Thursday that its top 30 executives won’t get cash bonuses for 2009—instead, discretionary compensation will come in the form of restricted stock—and must then be kept for a holding period of five years during which Goldman can rescind the shares. The company has been under scrutiny for its excess in the midst of the recession. Even with the new changes, the average Goldman employee will receive a $700,000 bonus—the highest in company history. “We believe our compensation policies are the strongest in our industry and ensure that compensation accurately reflects the firm's performance and incentivize behavior that is in the public's and our shareholders' best interests," Chairman and CEO Lloyd Blankfein said.