The AI craze has spread to Wall Street! Technology stocks are "eating meat" while major banks in the United States are "drinking soup".

On July 14, Wall Street's large banks proved to the market with a series of record-breaking performances that the beneficiaries of the artificial intelligence boom are far more than just the tech giants of Silicon Valley and chip manufacturers. Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (GS.US) and JPMorgan Chase (JPM.US) both delivered historic quarterly results, with revenues soaring by 39% to $20.3 billion and 27% to $58 billion, respectively. Driving these numbers is the ubiquitous presence of AI in the financial markets. JPMorgan Chase's Chief Financial Officer Jeremy Barnum bluntly stated during the earnings call, "These markets are thriving, with frequent activity, a surge in large IPOs, significant index adjustments, and very active Asian markets. Many of these are closely related to the theme of artificial intelligence...It's a very, very, very active market environment." Stock trading revenue explodes across the board: Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. sets industry record with $7.42 billion The most eye-catching data of this quarter comes from the stock trading business. Goldman Sachs Group, Inc.'s stock trading revenue surged by 72% to $7.42 billion, setting a new record for stock trading revenue for a single bank on Wall Street. The revenue generated in just the past three months has already surpassed the total for all four quarters of 2019. JPMorgan Chase also shined, with stock trading revenue soaring by 86% to $6 billion, setting a new high for the bank. The combined stock trading revenue for both companies was $4.4 billion higher than analyst expectations. Bank of America Corp. saw its stock trading revenue also increase by 70% to $3.6 billion. Citigroup's stock trading business revenue increased by 45%. The combined profit for the five major banks in the second quarter reached $49 billion, a 39% increase year-over-year. Analysts predict that the trading revenue for JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America Corp., Citigroup, Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., and Morgan Stanley in the second quarter will be close to $39 billion. Goldman Sachs Group, Inc.'s stock business revenue for the quarter has exceeded the total for all of 2019. Since Trump returned to office, the total stock trading revenue for the six major banks has broken records every quarter. JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America Corp, Citigroup, Wells Fargo & Company, and Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. all released their second-quarter earnings reports. The data shows that the five major banks collectively generated a profit of $49 billion, a 39% increase year-over-year. Wall Street bankers are using record-breaking financial reports to prove that in this trillion-dollar capital feast, those who broker trades are making a lot of money. Market volatility continues to support trading business - Political tensions at GEO Group Inc. combined with industry uncertainties brought by AI have kept volatility high. Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. CEO David Solomon said in June that the market is "more greedy than fearful," as investors flock to new IPOs. AI-driven large financing continues to land one after another: from SpaceX to SK Hynix The surge in stock trading is directly linked to the global capital reallocation around the AI theme. Investors are expanding their search for AI beneficiaries from U.S. tech giants to Asian markets like South Korea, China Taiwan, and Japan. Soofian Zuberi, Global Markets Head at Bank of America Corp, pointed out, "People look at trading in the AI field and ask, 'What best represents this trend outside the U.S.?' You will find that some U.S. clients are diversifying their investments and allocating more funds to Asia." Bank of America Corp's stock trading revenue increased by 70% to $3.6 billion. The "capital expenditure super cycle" for AI is propelling investment banking business to unprecedented heights. The record-breaking IPO of SpaceX is one of the most notable cases this quarter. Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., as the lead underwriter, along with Morgan Stanley, Bank of America Corp, and others, facilitated the largest IPO in history. The underwriting syndicate collectively earned about $500 million in fees. Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. and Morgan Stanley each earned about $100 million in underwriting revenue from the SpaceX IPO. More companies are ready to join this wave - Anthropic is expected to go public this year, and OpenAI and DeepSeek also have plans for an IPO. The SK Hynix ADR listing is also noteworthy. This storage chip giant raised $26.5 billion through American depositary receipt issuance, making it the largest foreign company to list in the U.S. Citigroup, as the joint global coordinator, earned over $70 million from this transaction. Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. provided advisory services for transactions worth $1.2 trillion in the first half of the year, leading its closest competitor by about $425 billion. Investment banking fee revenue increased by 55% to $3.4 billion, the highest since 2021. JPMorgan Chase's investment banking revenue increased by 30% to $3.3 billion. Bank of America Corp's investment banking fee revenue increased by 50% to $2.1 billion. The "ripple effect" of AI capital expenditure: from data centers to power infrastructure The spread of the AI investment boom goes far beyond the capital markets themselves. Solomon pointed out that this is creating a "ripple effect" in the U.S. economy, providing banks with numerous new opportunities. Senior executives at Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. elaborated on this logic during the earnings call: the AI capital cycle is extending to physical construction - data centers require real estate, power generation, transmission capacity, cooling systems, commodities, and structured financing; suppliers need working capital; infrastructure developers need private credit; tech companies may issue stocks or bonds; utilities companies may acquire assets or restructure portfolios to meet new energy demands. Solomon described this process as a "multiplier effect" - advisory services are just the starting point, leading to financing, risk management, capital market execution, and investment opportunities. For example, the $90 billion stock offering from Alphabet, the sale of Dominion Energy to NextEra Energy, and other transactions were all advised by banks like Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. Dealogic data shows that global investment banking revenue reached $61.4 billion in the first half of 2026, a 24% year-on-year increase. Data center operator Switch has hired an investment bank to prepare for an IPO, which could raise up to $10 billion, with valuation close to $80 billion. JPMorgan Chase's CFO Barnum pointed out that even non-AI-related companies are generating capital expenditure and loan demand: "Just as data centers will eventually create a lot of demand for plumbers and electricians, you will see this impact in some less visible areas." Since 2025, Bank of America Corp has raised nearly $500 billion for AI-related companies, accounting for 60% of the total investment-grade bond, leveraged finance, and equity finance. The bank recently provided a $520 million credit facility to OpenAI, its first loan to the AI company. Solomon defined the current situation as the "AI capital expenditure super cycle" and pointed out that "every region and every industry globally is facing enormous financing demands for various financial instruments." He stated that Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. is preparing for a "three to five-year investment cycle," which is still in the early stages. Reshaping the banking industry internally: the "two-way flywheel" of AI applications While benefiting from the external AI boom, Wall Street giants are also actively deploying AI technology internally, creating a positive feedback loop. JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon revealed that the bank currently has around 1,000 AI use cases in development, with about 50 being the bank's major efforts in areas such as fraud detection, risk management, marketing, document review, etc. Dimon stated that AI has reduced positions by 30% to 40% in certain specific areas, but most of those employees have found positions elsewhere. Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. has set a target to achieve a 15% efficiency improvement in the next three years through its AI "digital factory." The bank is collaborating with Anthropic to develop AI intelligent agents, gradually automating internal functions such as accounting, compliance processes, and customer onboarding. Soofian Zuberi, Global Markets Head at Bank of America Corp, succinctly summarized the nature of this two-way relationship: "Artificial intelligence is driving the banking industry forward by helping simplify processes. And the banking industry is also driving the development of artificial intelligence, as without the banking industry, there would be no funding for all these data centers." How long will the feast last? Stephen Biggar, Director of Financial Services Research at Argus Research, pointed out, "The AI-driven capital expenditure super cycle has benefited stock issuances, M&A activities, and debt financing." However, there are concerns beneath the feast. Recent tech stock volatility has led the market to question whether a batch of large IPOs in preparation can proceed smoothly. OpenAI is considering postponing its IPO from this fall to next year. Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. saw their stock prices drop more than 4% as a result. Solomon warned that the AI capital expenditure cycle will be accompanied by "ups and downs and recalibrations" - uncertainties still exist in the content of infrastructure construction, pricing mechanisms, and how to procure these infrastructures. But he emphasized that Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. is prepared for a three to five-year investment cycle, which is still in the early stages. The AI boom has spread from chip stocks to become a "comprehensive revenue engine" for Wall Street - from stock trading to IPO underwriting, from debt financing to M&A consulting, from wealth management to internal efficiency improvement. The question is no longer whether banks can profit from AI, but how long this feast can last.