Which is bigger, Goldman Sachs or Morgan Stanley?

Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley are compared across key metrics on this page.

Who founded Goldman Sachs?

Goldman Sachs was founded by Marcus Goldman, Samuel Sachs.

Who founded Morgan Stanley?

Morgan Stanley was founded by Henry Sturgis Morgan, Harold Stanley.

When was Goldman Sachs founded?

Goldman Sachs was founded in 1869.

When was Morgan Stanley founded?

Morgan Stanley was founded in 1935.

Goldman Sachs vs Morgan Stanley

Founding story, key facts and history — side by side.

Goldman Sachs

The premier global investment banking titan, defining elite Wall Street dealmaking and institutional market-making infrastructure.

Founded	1869
Founders	Marcus Goldman, Samuel Sachs
HQ	New York, New York
Symbol	NYSE: GS

Morgan Stanley

A premier global wealth management and capital markets powerhouse, engineered to capture stable recurring institutional advisory fees.

Founded	1935
Founders	Henry Sturgis Morgan, Harold Stanley
HQ	New York, New York
Symbol	NYSE: MS

The Story — Side by Side

Goldman Sachs

1869

The lower Manhattan commercial paper genesis

Marcus Goldman founded a small business in lower Manhattan, pioneering the trading of commercial paper—short-term promissory notes used by small businesses to secure working capital. Joined by his son-in-law Samuel Sachs in 1882, the partnership institutionalized corporate debt underwriting.

1999

The historic public offering and modern trading transition

After operating as a private partnership owned by its managing directors for 130 years, Goldman Sachs executed its historic initial public offering IPO on the NYSE, raising $3.66 billion. The capital influx transformed the firm into a corporate juggernaut, aggressively scaling its fixed income, currency, and commodities (FICC) trading segments.

2008

The subprime financial collapse and bank holding transition

Amid the peak systemic contagion of the subprime mortgage meltdown, Goldman Sachs avoided insolvency by converting into a traditional bank holding company under Federal Reserve oversight. This structural pivot granted the elite investment bank emergency access to direct discount window liquidity support.

2026

The core advisory defense and asset management apex

By mid-2026, Goldman Sachs successfully scaled back its costly retail consumer experiments to double down on its ultra-high-margin institutional roots. Under CEO David Solomon, the investment bank maintained its undisputed absolute dominance at the peak of global M&A advisory leagues.

Morgan Stanley

1935

The Glass-Steagall split and institutional genesis

Morgan Stanley was formed in direct response to the regulatory mandates of the historic Glass-Steagall Act, which legally banned financial institutions from operating both commercial credit lending and investment underwriting simultaneously. Core members of J.P. Morgan & Co. split off to build the specialized investment bank.

1997

The massive Dean Witter retail brokerage consolidation

The firm executed a transformative merger with prominent retail financial services giant Dean Witter Discover & Co., positioning the combined corporate entity to capture a massive balance between high-risk institutional investment banking and stable, everyday retail investment assets.

2020

The E*TRADE and Eaton Vance technology asset captures

Under visionary CEO James Gorman, Morgan Stanley executed massive consolidation deals, acquiring popular retail digital trading pioneer E*TRADE for $13 billion alongside elite investment manager Eaton Vance for $7 billion, constructing a massive, high-margin asset management wealth wheel.

2026

The multi-trillion wealth footprint and leadership era

By mid-2026, Morgan Stanley consistently commanded trillions in total client wealth assets, showcasing an elite template for balanced banking stability under CEO Ted Pick. The institution capitalized heavily on integrated cross-border technology layers to capture immense institutional prime brokerage inflows.

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