JPMorgan's Porretti departs, Goldman bankers pose for fashion shoot

Published March 6, 2026 3:30 PM

Updated March 6, 2026 3:30 PM

1 Min Read

In this week's banking news roundup:

JPMorganChase's Alfredo Porretti has left the firm;
Two Goldman Sachs junior bankers appeared in a controversial fashion shoot;
Societe Generale appointed Selina Cheung head of equity capital markets in Asia Pacific; and more.

JPMorgan’s co-head of shareholder engagement Porretti departs

Alfredo Porretti, one of the leaders of JPMorganChase's shareholder engagement team, has left the Wall Street bank, people familiar with the matter said. New York-based Porretti departed his role as co-head of shareholder engagement and mergers and acquisitions capital markets recently, the people said, asking not to be identified discussing confidential information.

A spokesperson for JPMorgan declined to comment. Porretti couldn't immediately be reached for comment.

Porretti and Darren Novak were promoted to co-lead the shareholder engagement unit alongside David Freedman in 2024. Last year, JPMorgan strengthened the team with the appointments of Duncan Herrington and Lyndon Park as managing directors. —Swetha Gopinath, Crystal Tse and David Carnevali, Bloomberg News

Goldman junior bankers’ fashion shoot sparks blame game

A magazine's glossy photo shoot with young Wall Streeters, including a pair from Goldman Sachs who opined on their spending and dating, is setting off finger-pointing inside the famously restrained investment bank.

When confronted by executives, at least one of the men said that they believed compliance was OK with participating in Interview Magazine's feature, "Meet the Finest Boys in Finance," according to people with knowledge of the matter. But the press office, which stewards the bank's image, was not on board.

"Goldman Sachs media relations did not approve these interviews," spokesman Tony Fratto said.

The employees — investment banking analyst Mason Clarke and sales trading associate Clay Nelson, who are both in their mid-20s — didn't respond to messages seeking comment.

The photo shoot featured Clarke lying on a tufted blue couch and wearing a suit from luxury brand Celine, a Hermès tie and Omega watch. Nelson wore a pinstripe Tom Ford suit and glasses from German eyewear brand Mykita. —Todd Gillespie and Sridhar Natarajan, Bloomberg News

SocGen taps UBS’ Cheung to lead APAC equity capital markets

Societe Generale has appointed Selina Cheung as head of equity capital markets in Asia Pacific, as the French lender looks to bolster its business advising on share sales.

Based in Hong Kong, Cheung will oversee the origination and execution of both equity and equity-linked transactions, according to a statement reviewed by Bloomberg News. She previously worked at UBS Group, where she was head of unified global banking in APAC.

Cheung will report to Stephanie Clement de Givry, SocGen's regional head of global banking and advisory, and global ECM co-heads Jeff Mortara and Anvita Arora.

Her appointment follows a string of senior hires at SocGen's ECM practice since the French bank launched a partnership in 2024 with AllianceBernstein for cash equities and research.

"This appointment reflects our strong ambition to expand our investment banking franchise in Asia Pacific and to better support our clients through every stage of their journey," Clement de Givry said. —Pablo Mayo Cerqueiro, Anthony Hughes and Julia Fioretti, Bloomberg News

BofA’s Hartnett sees European, Japanese Stocks at risk From war

A prolonged Iran war is a risk to the bank-stock powered rallies in Japan and Europe as investors abandon these markets in favor of exposure to oil and the U.S. dollar, Bank of America's Michael Hartnett said.

Investors are likely to shift to assets that are "beneficiaries of extended conflict," at the expense of "oil importers with minimal energy equity exposure," such as Korea, Japan and Europe, the strategist said. U.S. technology and global defense are among sectors that could gain during this rotation.

It's a scenario that has already started playing out since the U.S. and Israel launched their attacks against Iran and as the conflict has spread. European stocks are on course for their worst weekly drop since last April's tariff turmoil and the same is true of Japan's Nikkei 225 index. Volatile trading in Korean equities saw the Kospi index notch both a record decline and the biggest gain since 2008. —Rose Henderson, Bloomberg News

Banco Master’s Vorcaro moved to federal jail due to safety risks

Daniel Vorcaro, the owner of failed bank Banco Master, will be moved under high security to a federal prison in Brasília. Supreme Court Justice André Mendonça granted the transfer late Thursday following an urgent request from the Federal Police, which cited "imminent risks to the physical integrity" of Vorcaro. The banker had been held at a São Paulo state jail since his second arrest earlier this week.

The Federal Police also argued that Vorcaro has the "ability to articulate and influence" members of the public and private sectors, in justifying the prison transfer.

Already facing accusations of fraud, Vorcaro is now alleged to have threatened to attack one of Brazil's highest-profile journalists, overseeing employees who gained unauthorized access to systems run by the FBI and Interpol, and interfering with ongoing investigations into the banking scandal.

Holding Vorcaro at the Brasilia prison allows for better monitoring, the Federal Police said. Mendonça ordered the transfer executed immediately. —Rachel Gamarski, Bloomberg News

Bitcoin edges downward as traders take stock of Iran volatility

Bitcoin briefly dipped below the $70,000 mark on Friday after trading in a narrow range for much of the session, as investors remained on edge over developments in the Middle East.

The world's largest cryptocurrency slumped as much as 1.9% on Friday before recovering slightly, changing hands at about $70,000 in early morning trading in New York. The token's price has swung as much as 14% over the course of the week, ranging from a low of around $65,000 on Monday to a peak of over $74,000 on Wednesday.

"The market is cooling after a mid-week surge, consistent with the trend of large capital selling on the growth," said Alex Kuptsikevich, chief market analyst at FxPro. A sell-off in global bonds deepened after a jump in oil prices on Friday morning, with European equities falling across the board and U.S. stock futures trading lower. The yield on 10-year Treasuries rose ahead of Friday's payrolls report, a key event that crypto traders will watch with interest for signals on whether the Fed may cut interest rates later this month. —Emily Nicolle, Bloomberg News