Goldman Sachs Q2 profit hits record on M&A rebound
Goldman Sachs reported record second-quarter earnings as a 90% jump in large-cap M&A and rising AI infrastructure financing signalled a robust return of strategic dealmaking.
Goldman Sachs generated record net revenues of $20.3 billion and earnings per share of $20.98 in the second quarter of 2026. The firm posted a return on equity of 23.5% and a return on tangible equity of 25.5%. Chief Executive David Solomon attributed the performance to strong client activity and an acceleration in strategic dealmaking across global markets.
The Global Banking & Markets division powered the quarter with record revenues of $15.5 billion. Investment banking fees surged sharply, driven by jumps in M&A advisory, equity underwriting, and debt underwriting. Large-cap corporate M&A volumes rose 90% through the first half of the year as executives pursued scale to fund new investments and defend market share.
That surge in announced and completed deals pushed Goldman's advisory backlog to its highest level in five years. Notably, this peak in future work arrived even as the bank converted a substantial amount of existing backlog into current quarter revenue. The performance cements Goldman's position as the top-ranked leader in global M&A volume.
Asset and Wealth Management provided a secondary engine of growth, contributing $4.6 billion in revenue, a 20% increase from the prior year. This steady expansion in fee-based businesses, paired with the cyclical upside of investment banking, demonstrates the firm's ability to generate returns across varying market conditions.
Executives also pointed to artificial intelligence infrastructure as a distinct and emerging catalyst for the bank's capital markets and financing units. Goldman is seeing elevated demand for structuring and underwriting services tied to AI build-outs across both public and private markets. Management views this spending cycle as being in its "early innings," predicting multi-year revenue opportunities despite warning that the trajectory may be uneven.
Solomon credited the quarter to "the strength of our global franchise, the depth of our relationships, and our ability to harness the power of One Goldman Sachs in a very strong operating environment." For investors, the results confirm that the prolonged dealmaking drought has ended, replaced by a capital expenditure cycle led by corporate consolidation and AI deployment.
