John Waldron, president of Goldman Sachs, is being groomed to succeed CEO David Solomon as early as late 2027, according to the Wall Street Journal. Waldron, 57, was rejected by Goldman out of college after performing poorly on its financial modeling test. He began his career at Bear Stearns, where he met Solomon, before joining Goldman in 2000.

He rose through the ranks, becoming president and COO in 2018. Waldron and Solomon have advanced the “One Goldman Sachs” strategy to boost cross-unit collaboration and revenue. His 2025 pay was $45 million, just below Solomon’s $47 million.

Waldron received an $80 million retention bonus in 2023 amid talks with Apollo Global Management. A Cleveland native, he attended Lawrenceville School and Middlebury College, where he majored in English. Waldron lives on Manhattan’s Upper West Side with his family and values work-life balance, often sharing peanut butter and jelly dinners with his children before client meals.

He cites Dwight Eisenhower as a leadership influence.