Salomon Brothers Definition

What Was Salomon Brothers?

Salomon Brothers was an American investment monetary establishment. It was primarily based in 1910 and was some of the greatest investment banks on Wall Facet highway, providing a range of financial services and products. It was best-known for its fixed-income purchasing and promoting department. The company went by the use of a sequence of acquisitions and mergers between 1981 and 1997. It ultimately merged with Citigroup, adopting its name in 2003.

Key Takeaways

  • Salomon Brothers was an American investment monetary establishment—some of the greatest on Wall Facet highway during its time.
  • The monetary establishment was primarily based by way of brothers Arthur, Herbert, and Percy Salomon in 1910.
  • It was preferrred identified for its fixed-income purchasing and promoting department and in addition created the principle mortgage-backed protection throughout the Eighties.
  • The company went by the use of a sequence of acquisitions and mergers and was identified by way of different names previous than merging with Citigroup.
  • Salomon Brothers was embroiled in a sequence of scandals along with one involving Treasury bonds.

Working out Salomon Brothers

Salomon Brothers was established as an investment monetary establishment in 1910 by way of brothers Arthur, Herbert, and Percy Salomon. At the beginning a non-public company, it went public throughout the past due Seventies previous than going by the use of a sequence of acquisitions and mergers. Salomon Brothers was first were given by way of the Phibro Corporate in 1981, becoming known as Phibro-Salomon. In 1997, the monetary establishment merged with Smith Barney and formed Salomon Smith Barney. The monetary establishment then merged with Citigroup that exact same three hundred and sixty five days, with Salomon Smith Barney serving as its investment banking arm. In 2003, Citigroup dropped all references to Salomon Brothers because of a sequence of financial scandals.

As well-known above, the monetary establishment equipped reasonably numerous financial services and products, then again the monetary establishment established its legacy by the use of its fixed-income purchasing and promoting department. Salomon Brothers moreover developed the principle non-public mortgage-backed protection (MBS) throughout the Eighties. Perhaps the original founding fathers of high-yield bond purchasing and promoting, along with Drexel Burnham Lambert, the Salomon bond arbitrage staff established the purchasing and promoting careers of John Meriwether and Myron Sholes. 

Salomon Brothers was seen as some of the elite multinational investment banks and part of what was known as the bulge bracket. Salomon Brothers was famed for a cutthroat corporate custom that rewarded risk-taking with massive bonuses, punishing poor results with a swift boot. Michael Lewis’ guide “Liar’s Poker” depicts the high-pressure bond purchasing and promoting custom at Salomon Brothers, inspiring the most well liked view of Eighties and 1990s Wall Facet highway as a ruthless playground for those who don’t let morals get in one of the best ways of money.

Explicit Considerations

Warren Buffett—the Oracle of Omaha—invested in Salomon Brothers throughout the Eighties and had to individually take a spot on the board to filter out other people interested in a false Treasury bond bid scandal to stick the Securities and Industry Price (SEC) from taking prison movement. The scandal involved a Salmon broker who was making false bids to check out to buy further bonds than allowed. Buffett exited when the Travelers buyout came about and the corporate custom quickly reasserted itself.

Salomon alumni went immediately to have a large affect to be had available on the market. Long-Time frame Capital Keep watch over was created by way of Salomon alumni and the arbitrage positions it took on had been value over $1 trillion previous than its implosion in 1998. An international financial crisis was avoided this present day, then again it was now not the principle or remaining crisis that the high-risk, high-reward way of Salomon Brothers purchasing and promoting would prepare.

The surviving constructions of Salomon Brothers helped push Citigroup deep into the market for MBSs. The following hit that the monetary establishment took resulted in an extra exodus of former Salomon leaders and patrons. In 2009, the Wall Facet highway Mag reported that then-Citigroup CEO Vikram Pandit was dismantling the remnants of Salomon Brothers to keep away from an equivalent risks in the future. 

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