Goldman Sachs to cut staff by 10 per cent: source

London: Goldman Sachs Group Inc plans to cut 10 per cent of its total staff, or almost 3,300 jobs, a source familiar with the matter said on Thursday.

Goldman's move comes as Wall Street firms saw the worst September in the capital markets in decades including the bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers, the bailout of AIG, the acquisition of Merrill Lynch & Co Inc by Bank of America Corp and the takeover of Wachovia by Citi.

Goldman Sachs was the leading adviser to mergers and initial public offerings worldwide and has suffered less than most of its peers from the global financial crisis.

In June, Goldman laid off hundreds of support staff and junior bankers due to slowing markets following a round of cuts in leveraged lending and mortgage securities jobs in April.

The company had 32,569 employees worldwide at the end of August.