Who's who in the Goldman Sachs power struggle

A guide to the battle for control is playing out at the top of the Wall Street powerhouse that once dominated the financial world.

FORTUNE -- Shakespearean is a trope often used to describe the machinations of Wall Street power players, but only the Bard could do justice to the treacheries reportedly playing out at the top of Goldman Sachs. The story leaking out of the bank has all the ingredients MORE

Blankfein out as Goldman Sachs CEO by summer?

Exclusive: Goldman Sachs prepares for life after Lloyd Blankfein, and Gary Cohn is the leading candidate to succeed him as CEO.

FORTUNE -- Lloyd Blankfein may step down as chief executive of Goldman Sachs as early as this summer; and president and chief operating officer Gary Cohn is the lead candidate to replace him, according to a Goldman executive and a source close to the firm.

A Goldman spokesman declined to comment.

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S&P president: Why I'm still hopeful

Douglas Peterson, the president of Standard & Poor's, talks about European downgrades, ratings agency regulation and why he left an investment bank to run a firm trying to restore its reputation.

FORTUNE -- When Douglas Peterson, the new president of Standard & Poor's, talks about his firm, he repeats the words quality, integrity, and expertise over and again. S&P is on the brink of "a tremendous opportunity to grow," says Peterson, MORE

The triumph of Blackstone on Wall Street

The private equity giant has soared by obsessing about danger - and by becoming more than a one-man show.

FORTUNE -- The last time Blackstone's Steve Schwarzman was featured in the pages of Fortune, it was March 2007, and private equity firms were reveling in their moment of maximum glory. A frenzy of buying and bidding was pushing takeover deals into the tens of billions. Blackstone's founders, Schwarzman and Pete Peterson, MORE

Why you should be wary of Blackstone's 'stock'

FORTUNE -- Analysts have taken a shine to Blackstone (BX) of late, collectively predicting that its "stock" (we'll explain) will rise from its current $14 to $17. Investors should be cautious. The stock has fallen 56% since its debut at the height of the bubble. Yes, Blackstone's largest revenue stream, its fees for managing assets, are steady and strong. But the fees earned when it sells investments tend to be MORE

Yahoo's suitors: The good, the bad, the ugly

The question isn't who is exploring a Yahoo deal, it's who isn't. Here's a rundown of the latest rumors, and what does and doesn't work about their potential deals with the struggling company.

FORTUNE -- While Jerry Yang may not believe that Yahoo is on the auction block, the Wall Street Journal is full of reports that there are companies and private equity firms preparing to swallow up the battered, bruised, MORE

Dexia may be the spark that ignites Europe

Dexia isn't a household name in banking a la Bear Stearns or Merrill Lynch, but that may soon change as the Belgian lender faces another government-sponsored rescue.

FORTUNE -- Dexia is a little-known Belgian bank that has recently made headlines because it is struggling with funding problems, meaning that investors are reluctant to loan the bank the short-term money that it needs for day-to-day operations. It's a problem that several of MORE

SEC takes a swipe at S&P

Regulators may punish the rating agency for its role in a 2007 CDO deal.

FORTUNE -- The Securities and Exchange Commission may take formal action against the credit rating agency Standard & Poor's, the company said in a statement Monday.

McGraw-Hill, the parent company of S&P, received a so-called Wells Notice from the SEC last Thursday, which said that the commission could fine the company for alleged securities violations related to a MORE

Howard Marks: Why I'm cautiously buying

The billionaire founder of Oaktree Capital parses the downturn, and decides it's time to stop following the herd and to start looking for buying opportunities in bonds.

FORTUNE -- Howard Marks, the founder of the $79.5 billion Oaktree Capital, sent out his latest 13-page investment letter last week. The missive, titled "What's Behind the Downturn," lays out how a confluence of current events has weighed on markets and caused some of the MORE

Saba Capital: A hedge fund bright spot

The fund led by ex-Deutsche Bank trader Boaz Weinstein posted in gains in August, and for the year.

FORTUNE -- While some of the largest and most prominent hedge funds reeled in August, Boaz Weinstein's Saba Capital was up 2.5% for the month, pushing the flagship fund up 7.3% for the year, according to an investor in the fund.

By comparison, a broad index of hedge funds was down 2.3% in August, MORE