(Bloomberg) -- Eric Lane, the co-head of Goldman Sachs Group Inc.’s asset-management business, is quitting the firm to join Chase Coleman’s Tiger Global Management, just a day after news that a pair of senior consumer bankers are leaving for a fintech startup.
Lane is departing less than six months after taking over the firm’s newly expanded asset-management business along with Julian Salisbury, according to an internal memo seen by Bloomberg. The 25-year veteran of Goldman Sachs and a member of its most important decision-making body, will join hedge fund Tiger Global as president and chief operating officer, according to people with knowledge of the matter.
A representative for Tiger Global declined to comment.
Goldman’s asset-management division, with $8 billion of annual revenue, is a critical focus for Chief Executive Officer David Solomon, who hopes to rake in more client assets to generate a steady stream of fee income for the bank. That, along with the consumer business, are two new strategic projects that the bank has hoped will grow fast enough for it to reduce its reliance on its traditional strengths in investment banking and trading.
Read more: Goldman’s strategy stymied as consumer leaders defect
Lane’s surprise move comes just a day after people with knowledge of the matter said that Omer Ismail, the head of Goldman’s consumer bank, is leaving to run Walmart Inc.’s fledgling financial-technology startup. Ismail will bring along David Stark, who helped ink Goldman’s partnership with Apple Inc. and oversaw its tie-ups with JetBlue Airways Corp. and Amazon.com Inc.
Goldman in September shuffled its business lines and announced a raft of management changes, including that Lane and Salisbury would lead the combined asset-management and merchant bank. Lane previously ran the investment-management group, which also included Goldman’s consumer and wealth operations.