Dozens of British and American junior bankers at Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan laid off for CHEATING on basic math test

  • At least 20 Goldman Sachs graduates have been fired for cheating
  • Last month, at least 10 were sacked at JPMorgan for the same reason 
  • Both banks found their elite graduates cheated on basic math test
  • Staff claim cheating is common as graduates face immense pressure 
  • The small crop of trainees are selected out of thousands from top schools

By Mia De Graaf For Dailymail.com

Published: 01:09 EST, 23 October 2015 | Updated: 03:34 EST, 23 October 2015

Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase & Co have sacked dozens of analysts in their New York office after discovering they cheated to pass basic math exams.

At least 20 employees were fired from Goldman's two-year graduate program for young traders and bankers in New York and London this week.

It comes weeks after 10 or more entry-level bankers at JPMorgan's investment office in New York were laid off for the same reason, sources familiar with the incident told Bloomberg News.

Both banks found their elite graduates, selected from the best universities in the world through an intensely competitive application process, had smuggled in notes or copied colleagues' answers.

At least 10 junior bankers have been fired from JPMorgan Chase & Co for cheating on basic tests, reports say

At least 10 junior bankers have been fired from JPMorgan Chase & Co for cheating on basic tests, reports say

The internal accounting tests consist of basic maths problems, economic conundrums and accounting tasks. 

Astonishingly, JPMorgan staff told the Daily Telegraph cheating of this nature is common as the elite graduates face immense pressure to excel.

The majority of JPMorgan's disgraced staff in New York were graduate trainees from Britain - who were told to pay for their own flights home, according to the Telegraph.

Employees who succeed in the two-year junior level posting at Goldman are often hired to permanent posts, considered a plum assignment on Wall Street.

A Goldman Sachs spokesman confirmed the dismissals, but declined to elaborate on the details of the cheating.

'This conduct was not just a clear violation of the rules, but completely inconsistent with the values we foster at the firm,' said a Goldman spokesman.

Goldman Sachs last year hired just three percent of 267,000 applicants, according to Bloomberg News.

Goldman Sachs (New York office pictured) has fired at least 20 elite graduates for copying colleagues' notes

Goldman Sachs (New York office pictured) has fired at least 20 elite graduates for copying colleagues' notes

Reflecting on the incident, one JPMorgan staff member told the Telegraph cheating was common, and it was shocking the disgraced employees got caught.

'The exams are relatively easy to cheat on and people have cheated on them in the past. They are under a lot of pressure to pass them,' the source said. 

'These people must have cheated in a pretty stupid, clumsy way for them to get caught because otherwise I don't understand how they didn't get away with it,' the source added.

'The cheating would be by either bringing notes into the room or looking at the other pupils' work.'

A JPMorgan spokesman told the newspaper: 'This behaviour was entirely unacceptable and is not tolerated at our firm.' 

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