Intelligencer

Street News

A random survey of financial-industry professionals we stopped outside their offices to check on how bullish they feel.

Published Jun 25, 2006

Do you think New York is still the world’s financial capital?
Yes . . . 92
No . . . 1
No, it’s London . . . 2
If the NYSE buys Euronext . . . 3
No answer . . . 2

Who’s the smartest CEO on Wall Street?
Jamie Dimon, JPMorgan Chase . . . 21
John Mack, Morgan Stanley . . . 19
Lloyd Blankfein, Goldman Sachs . . . 18
Stan O’Neal, Merrill Lynch . . . 10
Chuck Prince, Citigroup . . . 7
Dick Fuld, Lehman Brothers . . . 7
James Cayne, Bear Stearns . . . 7
No answer . . . 11

If you were Hank Paulson, would you have quit Goldman to be Treasury secretary?
Yes . . . 33
No . . . 50
If I were already that rich . . . 13
If I wanted to run for office . . . 2
No answer . . . 2

Is the U.S. economy:
Lookin’ up . . . 12
Lookin’ steady . . . 48
Lookin’ droopy . . . 40

Is the main problem with the economy:
Fundamentals . . . 48
Perception . . . 35
Both . . . 1
There’s no problem . . . 4
Don’t know . . . 10
Bush . . . 2

Where do you think the Dow will end this year?
Below 9,000 . . . 4
9,000–10,000 . . . 15
10,000–11,000 . . . 27
11,000–12,000 . . . 44
More than that . . . 3
No answer . . . 7

Is it better to work for a:
Hedge fund . . . 18
Investment bank . . . 44
Private-equity firm . . . 23
No answer . . . 15

How much money do you think you need to accumulate to retire?
$40,000–$100,000 . . . 4
$250,000–$700,000 . . . 10
$1–$2 million . . . 35
$3–$7 million . . . 25
$10–$20 million . . . 5
$100 million . . . 1
No answer . . . 12
Don’t know . . . 8

Are 401(k)s good investments?
Yes . . .87
No . . . 10 (“a fraud.”)
For you, but not for me . . . 1
No answer . . . 2

Do you think visits to strip clubs with clients should be expensable?
Men:
Yes . . . 28
No . . . 37
“Don’t care” . . . 1
“Good question” . . . 1
Women:
Yes . . . 4
No . . . 28
“Depends: drinks—yes, other—no” . . . 1