Wall Street’s Top Execs Couldn’t Stop Bragging About Their Pipelines This Earnings Season

If there was one buzzword to capture banking chiefs’ mood during third-quarter earnings week, it was “pipeline.”

In Wall Street parlance, that refers to the backlog of deals investment banks are readying to bring to market — and from mega-merger powerhouses like Goldman Sachs to equity underwriting giants like Morgan Stanley, everyone was eager to emphasize that their pipelines are finally beginning to flow again.

Together, five of the biggest US banks reported broad-based improvement across advisory, equity, and debt underwriting — the first time in several years that deal activity has strengthened simultaneously across all three.

Chris Connors, a principal at the compensation consultancy Johnson Associates, told Business Insider that the results predicted healthy paydays for bankers come year’s end.

“The signs are pointing positive for bonuses this year across the board,” Connors told Business Insider on Tuesday. “Advisory incentives are going to be up as well — the backlogs are strong, and I think there’s just an optimism that the rest of the year is going to produce pretty positive results when it comes to M&A.”

The banks’ clients “are more comfortable about the long-term outlook,” he concluded, “and optimistic that deals are going to get done in the fourth quarter.”

Business Insider / October 15, 2025