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Orszag’s Faustian Bargain

Young Wall Street associates aren’t operating in a theater of war, so why can’t the industry actually do a little more to prevent their existences from becoming a total living hell—without the pat talking points?

Peter Orszag
Part of the Orszag “compact” is to give junior bankers “the feeling that you’re part of something.” Photo: Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg/Getty Images
William D. Cohan
September 22, 2024

The recurring issue of the mistreatment of junior bankers is once again reverberating across Wall Street in the wake of the sudden deaths of two young Bank of America employees: Leo Lukenas III, a 35-year-old investment banking associate, who died in May of coronary thrombosis after complaining of 100-hour-plus work weeks; and Adnan Deumic, a 25-year-old junior trader in London, whose heart stopped while playing soccer a few weeks later. Lukenas, an Army veteran, left behind a wife and two children.