James GormanMorgan Stanley CEO James GormanREUTERS/Joshua Roberts

  • The announcement that Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein will step down this fall has sparked new interest in succession planning at uptown rival Morgan Stanley.
  • Morgan Stanley CEO James Gorman has been in his role since 2010 and he isn’t likely to step down for another three to five years, sources told Business Insider.
  • Still, the firm’s board has already drawn out a list of potential successors to Gorman.

Goldman Sachs made headlines earlier this month when it announced president David Solomon would succeed Lloyd Blankfein as the investment bank’s CEO in October. 

That ended months of speculation about when Blankfein would give up the reigns of the white-shoe firm. It also has sparked interest in who might succeed James Gorman, CEO of its uptown rival, Morgan Stanley, who has held the chief executive role for the past eight years and is credited with transforming the bank into a wealth management powerhouse.  

Business Insider has learned that Gorman, 60, will likely stay at the firm as chief executive office for an additional three to five years. 

In the short term, if Gorman were to step down for an unexpected reason, he would likely be replaced by Colm Kelleher, the president of the bank, sources said. 

But the company does have a short list of other senior executives who are likely contenders to succeed Gorman. 

A spokeswoman for Morgan Stanley declined to comment on the bank’s succession plans. 

Here’s the list: