Goldman Sachs (GS) 01 (Jun 08 - Apr 10)

[winston]

Would it be really the end of the world if they had let ALL the Investment banks & AIG failed ? I doubt it . There was US$8.8t of cash on the sidelines...

=================================

Goldman Sachs chief defends pay policies

WASHINGTON (AFP) - – Goldman Sachs' top executive on Tuesday defended the investment giant's executive pay policies, saying they underscore the principle of "pay for performance."

http://sg.news.yahoo.com/afp/20091111/t ... 2e412.html

[millionairemind]

Would it be really the end of the world if they had let ALL the Investment banks & AIG failed ? I doubt it . There was US$8.8t of cash on the sidelines...

I am almost thro' this book IN FED WE TRUST on the great panic in 2008 and Ben's response to it.

In the book the author profiles Bernanke's rise to the top, the work he did during his academic years. Bernanke did a paper on the GREAT DEPRESSION.

One of the major learnings he came away with was what turned a tough recession into a depression and it was due mainly to the FED's fault back then. Back then, the FED tightened credit instead of bringing out the punch bowl, resulting in massive bank failures. This resulted in credit drought for the economy. His work is the basis for how he dealt with the great PANIC of 2008.

[kennynah]

just curious though....on the accurate pronunciation of this company's name...should it be

goldman sex?

or

goldman sucks?

or

goldman sags?

or

goldman sacks?

have always wondered...

[millionairemind]

Goldman apologises for role in crisis

By Francesco Guerrera and Justin Baer in New York and Tom Braithwaite in Washington

Published: November 17 2009 21:20 | Last updated: November 18 2009 00:17

Goldman Sachs apologised for its role in the financial crisis on Tuesday and pledged $500m over five years – or about 2.3 per cent of its estimated bonus and salary pool for 2009 – to help 10,000 US small businesses recover from the ­recession.

The moves come as the bank tries to defuse a political and public backlash over its plans to share billions of dollars among top dealmakers after rebounding sharply from the turmoil and earning record profits in the first nine months of the year.

Lloyd Blankfein, Goldman’s chief executive, told a corporate conference in New York that the bank regretted taking part in the cheap credit boom that had fuelled the pre-crisis bubble. “We participated in things that were clearly wrong and have reason to regret,” said Mr Blankfein. “We apologise.”

Mr Blankfein also told the conference he wished he had not told the UK’s Sunday Times newspaper that Goldman did “God’s work” – a remark that was seized upon by the bank’s critics – and said it had been meant as a joke.

Mr Blankfein spoke hours before Goldman revealed plans to invest $500m over five years in business education, technical assistance and venture capital to help 10,000 small businesses across the US. The yearly amount of about $100m to be spent on the initiative – which will be overseen by a panel co-chaired by Warren Buffett, a Goldman investor – is equivalent to a good trading day at Goldman. In the third quarter, the bank had 36 days in which traders made more than $100m.

Mr Buffett told the Financial Times that the small business programme was not a response by the bank to recent criticism. “This is a big initiative,” he said. “This is not a one-day or one-year wonder. It’s a continuous programme.”

Goldman stressed that the small business drive had been planned for a year.

In choosing to help small businesses, Goldman has identified one of the US administration’s policy priorities.

Tim Geithner, Treasury secretary, is hosting a summit on Wednesday with members of Congress, small companies, financial regulators and banks to work on ways to kickstart lending to the sector

Goldman has set aside $16.7bn for compensation in the first nine months of the year. Brad Hintz, an analyst at Alliance Bernstein, recently estimated total compensation expenses in 2009 would reach $21.8bn.

Trading profits at Goldman, which was allowed to become a bank holding company last year to access emergency federal aid, have been booming this year, partly thanks to the liquidity pumped into the markets by governments around the world
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/782afd66-d3bd ... abdc0.html

[millionairemind]

Fat hope!

November 20, 2009, 3.19 pm (Singapore time)

Big shareholders ask Goldman to cut bonuses: WSJ

Some of Goldman Sachs Group Inc's largest shareholders have asked the company to cut the size of its bonus pool and pass along more of its profits to investors, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the situation.

Although the shareholders are not pushing for a huge cut, they feel that Goldman should better reward shareholders for this year's rebound, the paper said.

Goldman has faced public anger for setting aside nearly US$17 billion for year-end bonuses after receiving a US$10 billion taxpayer bailout during the financial crisis. The bank has paid back the government money.

Goldman has reported robust profits in the past two quarters, with net income in excess of US$3 billion.

The shareholders are also concerned about a change in the company's financial statements that increased the firm's total headcount by adding temporary employees and consultants, the paper said.

Due to the change, it looked like Goldman employees are on pace to earn US$717,000 per person in 2009, the Journal said.

The paper quoted a Goldman spokesman saying shareholders 'have historically been more focused on the absolute return on equity and on book value per share growth' than per-share earnings.

Goldman could not be immediately reached for comment outside regular US business hours. -- REUTERS

[kennynah]

Some of Goldman Sachs Group Inc's largest shareholders have asked the company to cut the size of its bonus pool and pass along more of its profits to investors

need to "ask" meh.... just mandate it thru board direction lor

[winston]

1) Goldman has faced public anger for setting aside nearly US$17 billion for year-end bonuses after receiving a US$10 billion taxpayer bailout during the financial crisis.
2) Goldman has reported robust profits in the past two quarters, with net income in excess of US$3 billion.

1) They are paying our US$17b in bonuses but had to borrow US$10b from the US government? Wouldn't it make some sense to build up some reserve for a rainy day ?

2) Again, US$12b of profits vs US$17b in bonuses ? Does not make sense but the answer I got from an insider is that a lot of the bonuses are in shares. So when they get fired or resign, they wont get those money

[kennynah]

did u ask the insider for some "inside" tips ?

[kennynah]

what do you think ?

[winston]

did u ask the insider for some "inside" tips ?

Do you trust the tips from an "Insider" in GS ?