Goldman Sachs lays off dozens of traders

A dreaded bloodbath at Goldman Sachs under the bank’s new boss has finally begun.

The Wall Street powerhouse — whose new chief executive, David Solomon, took the reins from Lloyd Blankfein last October — laid off 65 employees in its New York office at the end of February, according to notice filed Thursday with the state Department of Labor.

The body count, however, is expected to swell in the coming weeks, according to sources close to the bank.

Already this week, Goldman has laid off still more employees, focusing on traders and salespeople in the equities and credit divisions, according to two people familiar with the layoffs.

About five people were let go from the stocks desk this week, while another six were let go in credit, but it’s likely that the extent of the layoffs will be “way higher” through the fixed income unit, a source told The Post.

Goldman spokesman Michael DuVally declined to comment.

The layoffs at Goldman have been closely watched on Wall Street for hints about what direction will be taken by Solomon, who in addition to his dealmaking prowess has become famous for his side gig as a club DJ under the name DJ D-Sol.

Every year around March, Goldman and other banks begin their spring cleaning, typically slashing about 5 percent of their workforce as they weed out underperforming traders and bankers. Some businesses inside Goldman, however, are expected to see steeper cuts this year.

Goldman’s traders in particular are fearful, insiders say, as Solomon previously headed up Goldman’s investment banking business — a unit that has long cultivated a rivalry versus the trading division that his predecessor, Blankfein, came from.

During the last quarter of 2018, Goldman’s stock trading revenue rose 17 percent, to $1.60 billion. Bond trading — which has struggled for years — had a rougher time, with revenue down 18 percent, to $822 million.

Goldman’s investment bank, meanwhile, raked in $2.04 billion in profit in the fourth quarter last year, about 5 percent less than the same period in 2017.

Goldman Sachs has about 36,600 employees worldwide.

Shares of the Wall Street firm closed up $0.22, or 0.1 percent, to $197.47, in Thursday trading.