Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon joins Trump on Beijing trade mission

David Solomon was not heading to Beijing as a spectator. Goldman Sachs’s chief executive was among the top business leaders invited to join President Donald Trump on a state visit to China that ran May 13 to 15, a delegation that put finance, technology and industrial access in the same room as the White House and Chinese officials.

For Goldman employees, especially in banking, markets and Asia-facing roles, the trip signaled that the firm’s China strategy remains a senior priority even as U.S.-China tensions stay elevated over trade, AI, export controls and geopolitics. Solomon was named alongside Elon Musk, Tim Cook, Larry Fink, Stephen Schwarzman, Jane Fraser and Dina Powell McCormick in a group that stretched across tech, finance, manufacturing and aerospace, with more than a dozen executives in total.

The business case was clear. The trip was designed to help unlock business deals and purchase agreements with Beijing, and the companies involved were largely looking to resolve practical issues with China and deepen access to Chinese markets. That matters inside Goldman because access, approvals and relationship capital can shape everything from investment banking mandates to trading flows and the ability to keep competing for multinational clients that need China exposure.

Citigroup’s still-pending approval for a wholly owned securities brokerage licence in China showed the kind of concrete prize executives were chasing. The broader read from the delegation was that firms were not simply seeking symbolic goodwill, but a tangible ask that could translate into regulatory progress, market entry or easier operating conditions in the world’s second-largest economy.

The composition of the group also said something about who gets a seat at these moments. Only two women were included, Jane Fraser and Dina Powell McCormick, in a delegation otherwise dominated by male chief executives from Apple, Tesla, Boeing, Goldman Sachs, Blackstone and others. That mix underscored how closely geopolitical access is still tied to a narrow circle of power brokers, even as the business issues on the table affect thousands of employees farther down the org chart.

For Goldman staff, the message was straightforward: China remains a place where opportunity and risk are converging, and Solomon’s presence in Beijing suggested the firm still sees value in staying close to both Washington and Beijing as it weighs where cross-border finance can still work.