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113-578: In 2004, the company officially changed its name to AXA Equitable Life Insurance Company. By 2018, the company had over 15,800 agents licensed by the State of California. In January 2020, it changed its name to Equitable Holdings, Inc. following its spinoff from AXA and the related public offerings beginning in May 2018. Equitable opened its headquarters at the Equitable Life Building in 1870 in

226-432: A Private Wealth Management division along with a fixed income division in 1972. It pioneered the " white knight " strategy in 1974 during its attempts to defend Electric Storage Battery against a hostile takeover bid from International Nickel and Goldman's rival, Morgan Stanley . John Weinberg , the son of Sidney Weinberg, and John C. Whitehead assumed the roles of co-senior partners in 1976, once again emphasizing

339-438: A direct bank . In October 2016, Goldman Sachs Bank USA started offering no-fee unsecured personal loans under the brand Marcus by Goldman Sachs. In March 2016, Goldman Sachs agreed to acquire financial technology startup Honest Dollar , a digital retirement savings tool founded by American entrepreneur Whurley , focused on helping small-business employees and self-employed workers obtain affordable retirement plans. Terms of

452-995: A $ 10 billion investment from the United States Department of the Treasury as part of the Troubled Asset Relief Program , a financial bailout created by the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 . The investment was made in November 2008 and was repaid with interest in June 2009. During the 2007 subprime mortgage crisis , Goldman profited from the collapse in subprime mortgage bonds in summer 2007 by short-selling subprime mortgage-backed securities . Two Goldman traders, Michael Swenson and Josh Birnbaum , are credited with being responsible for

565-597: A cited height figure of 142 feet (43 m). According to a contemporary article in The New York Times , the Equitable Life Building was at least 130 feet (40 m) tall. Architect Robert A. M. Stern wrote that was likely the actual height based on a "convincing analysis" by architectural writer Lee Edward Gray. An expansion in 1885 brought the total height to 155 feet (47 m) and nine stories. Up to five separate structures made up

678-483: A fee-based financial counseling service. In October 2003, in its Global Economics Paper No. 99 (Dreaming With BRICs: The Path to 2050), researchers at Goldman Sachs led by Jim O'Neill, Baron O'Neill of Gatley introduced the BRIC concept, identifying the developing countries of Brazil , Russia , India , and China , as rising economic powers . In May 2006, Paulson left the firm to serve as United States Secretary of

791-414: A geometric clerking hall was illuminated by exterior walls. While Post's plans no longer exist, his designs influenced the inclusion of the sculptural pediment and the facade pavilion. In January 1868, Equitable's building committee announced that Gilman and Kendall had won the competition. Their partnership had been strained at the time of the commission; an October 1869 New York Herald article called

904-417: A large extension to the Equitable Life Building. Several lots on Broadway and Pine Street, measuring 80 by 191 feet (24 by 58 m), would be acquired for the annex. The mansard roof would be removed and replaced with the eighth and ninth stories. David H. King Jr. was hired as the annex's general contractor. The expansion was completed by 1887; George B. Post designed the expansion, while David H. King Jr.

1017-464: A net profit due to significant losses on non-prime securitized loans being offset by gains on short mortgage positions. The firm's viability was called into question as the crisis intensified in September 2008. In October 2007, Goldman Sachs was criticized for packaging risky mortgages and selling them to the public as safe investments. In 2007, former Goldman Sachs trader Matthew Marshall Taylor

1130-472: A result, the company decided to begin the process to spin off the U.S. operations, the old Equitable Life Assurance company. In its filing, AXA noted that once the IPO took place, there would be four separate companies created: AXA Equitable Life Insurance Company, AXA Distribution Holding Corp., EQ AZ Life Re Company, and MONY Life Insurance Company of America. In May 2018, AXA announced the successful completion of

1243-400: A reversal of the sentiment in 2006. In 2011, Goldman took full control of JBWere in a $ 1 billion (~$ 1.34 billion in 2023) buyout. In September 2011, Goldman Sachs announced that it was shutting down Global Alpha Fund LP, its largest hedge fund, which had been housed under Goldman Sachs Asset Management (GSAM). Global Alpha, which was created in the mid-1990s with $ 10 million,

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1356-485: A secondary common stock offering of 40 million shares of AXA Equitable Holdings, Inc. (ticker EQH), bringing down their ownership stake from approximately 60% to 48.3% and raising net proceeds of $ 1.5 billion. On November 7, 2019, AXA announced the sale of its remaining stake in AXA Equitable Holdings (EQH), selling 144 million shares of common stock to Goldman Sachs , which was the sole underwriter for

1469-470: A single story, and a similar architectural treatment was used for the fourth and fifth floors. Cornices separated these horizontal groupings, but there was no horizontal separation between the second/third and fourth/fifth floors, leading some observers to describe the Equitable Life Building erroneously as five stories. Rather, the double-story sections contained windows measuring 9 by 17 feet (2.7 by 5.2 m). Vertical piers with paired columns separated

1582-400: A total of $ 193 billion. Goldman Sachs's borrowings totaled $ 782 billion in hundreds of revolving transactions over these months. The loans were fully repaid in accordance with the terms of the facilities. In 2008, Goldman Sachs started a "Returnship" internship program after research and consulting with other firms led them to understand that career breaks happen and that returning to

1695-598: A trial, Justice Vivien Rose entered a judgment in Goldman Sachs's favor, saying that the relationship "did not go beyond the normal cordial and mutually beneficial relationship that grows up between a bank and a client" and that Goldman's fees were not excessive. In August 2015, Goldman Sachs agreed to acquire General Electric 's GE Capital Bank on-line deposit platform, including US$ 8-billion of on-line deposits and another US$ 8-billion of brokered certificates of deposit. In April 2016, Goldman Sachs launched GS Bank,

1808-538: A widow. This sculptural group was carved in Italy and was unveiled when Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich of Russia traveled to the United States in 1871. Badly corroded by rain, it was removed in 1886–1887. The heads survived removal and passed through various owners. Ward's statue commemorating Hyde was unveiled in 1901. It was placed in the building's corridor. The statue survived the fire that burned down

1921-507: Is a market maker for many types of financial products and provides clearing and custodian bank services. It operates private-equity funds and hedge funds . It structures complex and tailor-made financial products. It also owns Goldman Sachs Bank USA, a direct bank . It trades both on behalf of its clients ( flow trading ) and for its own account ( proprietary trading ). The company invests in and arranges financing for startups, and in many cases gets additional business as bookrunner when

2034-609: Is an American multinational investment bank and financial services company. Founded in 1869, Goldman Sachs is headquartered in Lower Manhattan in New York City , with regional headquarters in many international financial centers. Goldman Sachs is the second-largest investment bank in the world by revenue and is ranked 55th on the Fortune 500 list of the largest United States corporations by total revenue. In

2147-737: Is credited with Goldman's famous philosophy of being "long-term greedy," which implied that as long as money is made over the long term, short-term losses are bearable. At the same time, partners reinvested nearly all of their earnings in the firm. Weinberg remained a senior partner of the firm and died in July of that year. Another financial crisis for the firm occurred in 1970, when the Penn Central Transportation Company went bankrupt with over $ 80 million (~$ 484 million in 2023) in commercial paper outstanding, most of it issued through Goldman Sachs. The bankruptcy

2260-400: The 2007–2008 financial crisis and the possible shift of the company's earnings to tax havens . Additional protests occurred in 2016 when the initial public offering of the company resulted in a windfall profit for Goldman. Goldman purchased the 18% stake in 2014 for 8 billion kroner and sold just over a 6% stake in 2017 for 6.5 billion kroner. Goldman sold its remaining stake in

2373-564: The 2007–2008 financial crisis , the Federal Reserve introduced several short-term credit and liquidity facilities to help stabilize markets. Some of the transactions under these facilities provided liquidity to institutions whose disorderly failure could have severely stressed an already fragile financial system. Goldman Sachs was one of the heaviest users of these loan facilities, taking out many loans between March 18, 2008, and April 22, 2009. The Primary Dealer Credit Facility (PDCF),

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2486-607: The Apple Card , the bank's first credit card offering. The partnership opportunity had been turned down by other banks including Barclays , Citigroup , JPMorgan Chase and Synchrony Financial . In March 2019, Goldman Sachs was fined £34.4 million by the London regulator for misreporting millions of transactions over a decade. In December 2019, the company pledged to invest and finance $ 750 billion in climate transition projects and to stop financing oil exploration in

2599-475: The Arctic and some projects related to coal. In June 2020, Goldman Sachs introduced a new corporate typeface, Goldman Sans, and made it freely available. After Internet users discovered that the terms of the license prohibited the disparagement of Goldman Sachs, the bank was much mocked and disparaged in its own font, until it eventually changed the license to the standard SIL Open Font License . Goldman Sachs

2712-672: The City Investing Building . The society also sold the land to T. Coleman du Pont in October 1912 for $ 13.5 million. Du Pont developed the present Equitable Building , designed by Ernest R. Graham & Associates , on the same plot between 1913 and 1915. The massive bulk of the newer building was a major impetus behind the city's 1916 Zoning Resolution , which placed limits on building height and shape. The initial structure has been described as one of three influential early skyscrapers of Lower Manhattan , along with

2825-497: The Equitable Life Assurance Society . Since Equitable occupied the second and third floors, which were seen as relatively unappealing, it could rent out the more desirable quarters in the basements, ground floor, and upper floors. The ground floor and the raised upper basement had banking rooms. Three of the banking rooms had marble floors, as did the entrance hall. When the building was renovated in

2938-542: The Financial District of Manhattan, with entrances facing Broadway , Pine Street, and Cedar Street. Aside from Hyde, who was president of Equitable, the firm's officers included James Waddell Alexander (Vice President), George W. Phillips (Actuary) who was Vice President of the Actuarial Society of America, and Samuel Borrowe (Secretary). Borrowe's family was a prominent New York family connected to

3051-600: The Forbes Global 2000 of 2024, Goldman Sachs ranked 23rd. It is considered a systemically important financial institution by the Financial Stability Board . Goldman Sachs offers services in investment banking (advisory for mergers and acquisitions and restructuring ), securities underwriting , prime brokerage , asset management as well as wealth management and investment management via Goldman Sachs Personal Financial Management . It

3164-606: The London and Tokyo stock exchanges , where its mergers and acquisitions grew. During the 1980s, the firm became the first bank to distribute its investment research electronically and created the first public offering of original issue deep-discount bond . In 1988, it helped the State Bank of India obtain a credit rating and issue US$ 200 million in the US commercial paper market. Robert Rubin and Stephen Friedman assumed

3277-560: The Office of Strategic Services and War Information, which often sent their men behind enemy lines, and air-traveling statesmen and Congressmen. By May 1945, only 24 death claims had been filed (about half the normal peacetime rate for a group plan covering 7,000 workers), allowing the insurer to return roughly 30% of the premiums to WAEPA. In 1985, the Equitable Life Assurance Society of the United States, then

3390-431: The U.S. Treasury in October 2008, as part of the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP). Andrew Cuomo , then New York Attorney General , questioned Goldman's decision to pay 953 employees bonuses of at least $ 1 million (~$ 1.39 million in 2023) each after it received TARP funds in 2008. In that same period, however, CEO Lloyd Blankfein and six other senior executives opted to forgo bonuses, stating they believed it

3503-567: The Western Union Telegraph Building and the New York Tribune Building . Architectural historians Sarah Bradford Landau and Carl W. Condit wrote that the Equitable Life Building was considered to be one of the first skyscrapers. However, the classification of the Equitable Life Building as a skyscraper is disputed. The Tribune and Western Union Buildings are variously cited as being either

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3616-582: The World Bank . In 2000, Goldman Sachs advised Jim and Janet Baker on the sale of Dragon NaturallySpeaking to Lernout & Hauspie of Belgium for $ 580 million in L&;H stock. L&H later collapsed due to accounting fraud and its stock price declined significantly. The Bakers filed a lawsuit against Goldman Sachs, alleging negligence, intentional and negligent misrepresentation, and breach of fiduciary duty since Goldman did not uncover and warn Dragon or

3729-517: The dissolution of the Soviet Union , the firm also became involved in facilitating the global privatization movement by advising companies that were spinning off from their parent governments. In 1986, the firm formed Goldman Sachs Asset Management, which manages the majority of its mutual funds and hedge funds . In the same year, the firm also underwrote the IPO of Microsoft , advised General Electric on its acquisition of RCA , and joined

3842-535: The $ 2.913 billion (~$ 3.76 billion in 2023) Grand Parkway System Toll Revenue Bond offering for the Houston, Texas area, one of the fastest-growing areas in the United States. The bond will be repaid from toll revenue. In April 2013, together with Deutsche Bank , Goldman led a $ 17 billion bond offering by Apple Inc. , the largest corporate-bond deal in history and Apple's first since 1996. Goldman Sachs managed both of Apple's previous bond offerings in

3955-653: The 1990s. In June 2013, Goldman Sachs purchased the loan portfolio from Brisbane-based Suncorp Group , one of Australia's largest banks and insurance companies. The A$ 1.6 billion face amount loan portfolio was purchased for A$ 960 million. In September 2013, Goldman Sachs Asset Management agreed to acquire the stable value business of Deutsche Asset & Wealth Management, with total assets under supervision of $ 21.6 billion (~$ 27.9 billion in 2023) as of June 30, 2013 . In 2014, Goldman Sachs acquired an 18% stake in DONG Energy (now Ørsted A/S ),

4068-584: The Bakers of the accounting problems of the acquirer, L&H. Lawyers for Goldman said it was not Goldman's job to uncover the accounting fraud. On January 23, 2013, a federal jury rejected the Bakers' claims and found Goldman Sachs not liable to the Bakers, instead siding with Goldman in counterclaims. In March 2003, the firm took a 45% stake in a joint venture with JBWere , the Australian investment bank. In April 2003, Goldman acquired The Ayco Company L.P.,

4181-621: The Belmont Building and the Western National Building, which were never subsumed by the Equitable Life Building. Post was asked to prepare plans for a 40-story structure in 1897, though the design was ultimately not executed. The securities vault and the statue of Hyde were added at the end of the 19th century. By 1900, the Equitable Life Building had over 3,000 occupants. In 1907, Daniel H. Burnham 's company D. H. Burnham & Company had proposed replacing

4294-592: The Broadway entrance, which was built in 1899–1900. The vault had the latest security systems, including 9-short-ton (8.0-long-ton; 8.2 t) doors and time locks . The Equitable Life Building was one of the first buildings in the city to use iron floor beams, and exposed iron was common throughout the interior of the building. While touted as fireproof, the Equitable Life Building still contained combustible components and non-fireproof materials. The floors were made of wood atop brick- or hollow-tile arches; in turn,

4407-535: The Equitable Life Building Kendall's "first great work", implying that Gilman was no longer involved in the project. Furthermore, even though Post had not won the design competition for the building, he was still credited as one of the building's architects. Post had redesigned the structural system for the office floors and had recommended the use of brick and terracotta above a granite base. Architectural critic Montgomery Schuyler wrote

4520-480: The Equitable Life Building were two raised skylights at the top of the 26-foot-high (7.9 m) ceiling. On the second floor a marble counter enclosed a workspace for 120 or 150 clerks. The offices of 40 officers and agents ran along the periphery of the workroom. A gallery enclosed three sides of the third floor, accessed from a spiral staircase in a corner of the second floor office of Henry Baldwin Hyde , founder of

4633-494: The Equitable Life Building with a 33-story structure (later changed to a 62-story building), but the plan was ultimately dropped. Rather, Equitable constructed the Hazen Building on nearby Greenwich Street to store its files. The Equitable Life Building, described as fireproof, was destroyed by a massive fire on January 9, 1912. The fire started in the basement at about 5:00 a.m. EST but quickly spread to

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4746-575: The Equitable to increase and diversify its asset base. On July 18, 1991, AXA Group of France bought a $ 1 billion stake in Equitable Life Assurance Society, for a 49% stake in the business. This enabled Equitable to set aside $ 500 million for losses in its real estate and junk bond portfolios. There had been rumors that Equitable was nearing a bankruptcy filing prior to the AXA Group infusion of capital. The investment by AXA Group significantly altered

4859-531: The Greek goddess Athena, which has been a consistent element of the company’s 160-year-old visual identity. Equitable Life Building (Manhattan) The Equitable Life Assurance Building , also known as the Equitable Life Building , was the headquarters of the Equitable Life Assurance Society of the United States , at 120 Broadway in Manhattan , New York. Arthur Gilman and Edward H. Kendall designed

4972-674: The Hallett and Alsop families. Between 1889 and 1891, the Equitable Life Assurance Society of the United States built in the Innere Stadt of Vienna , Austria , the sumptuous Palais Equitable , at Stock-im-Eisen-Platz in the city center next to the Stephansplatz . James Waddell Alexander, the son of James Waddel Alexander , was the company president at the time of the Hyde costume ball scandal in 1905, in which James Hazen Hyde ,

5085-420: The IPO of AXA Equitable Holdings, raising $ 2.75 billion on the sale of 24.5% of the outstanding shares. Additionally, the company announced an issuance of $ 750 million of bonds mandatorily exchangeable into shares of AXA Equitable Holdings stock. And finally, $ 502 million of options were exercised, bringing the total to $ 4.02 billion in proceeds to AXA. On March 25, 2019, AXA announced the successful completion of

5198-481: The IPO, Henry Paulson became chairman and chief executive officer, succeeding Jon Corzine. In September 2000, Goldman Sachs purchased Spear, Leeds, & Kellogg, one of the largest specialist firms on the New York Stock Exchange, for $ 6.3 billion (~$ 10.6 billion in 2023). In January 2000, Goldman, along with Lehman Brothers , was the lead manager for the first internet bond offering for

5311-474: The Treasury , and Lloyd Blankfein was promoted to chairman and chief executive officer. In January 2007, Goldman, along with CanWest Global Communications , acquired Alliance Atlantis , the company with the broadcast rights to the CSI franchise . As a result of its involvement in securitization during the subprime mortgage crisis , Goldman Sachs suffered during the 2007–2008 financial crisis , and it received

5424-411: The U.S. and hosted a building competition with several contestants. Charles D. Gambrill and Henry Hobson Richardson , Richard Morris Hunt , and George B. Post each submitted proposals, which were rejected by the committee. Gambrill and Richardson's plan, which featured a large central clerking hall lit by skylights, prioritized the usage of the site. By contrast, Hunt proposed three schemes in which

5537-493: The amount the company had saved by self-insuring its properties. Damage was estimated at $ 2 million, but the structure was considered "no asset"—it was worthless because of the high demand for vacant land in the Financial District. Most of the losses were in the value of the building's law library. The land was actually worth more after the fire than beforehand. Equitable quickly set up temporary quarters at

5650-565: The arcade as a "marvel of the architect's and builder's art", in that respect superseding the nearby 280 Broadway , a grand Italianate department-store building nearby. Also in the lobby was the Cafe Savarin, a French-cuisine eatery on the Pine Street side of the building. A cross-passage stretched from Cedar to Pine Streets. The fourth through sixth floors had 50 offices, which were occupied almost exclusively by lawyers. There

5763-481: The arches were located between the I-beams , which were made of iron and steel. The undersides of the arches were composed of metal lath and plaster, which were used to flatten the ceilings. Partitions were made of angle-iron studs, covered with metal lath and plaster. In the 1887 annex, the floors were of hollow burnt-clay flat arches set between iron beams, and the partitions were made of burnt clay blocks. The roof

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5876-412: The building, with George B. Post as a consulting engineer. The Equitable Life Building was made of brick , granite , and iron , and was originally built with seven above-ground stories and two basement levels, with a height of at least 130 feet (40 m). An expansion in 1885 brought the total height to 155 feet (47 m) and nine stories. Construction began in 1868 and was completed in 1870 under

5989-421: The building. Its final height may have been 172 feet (52 m). The building was touted as fireproof, with innovative features such as elevators and electric lighting. With an ornate arcade , it was described as a predecessor to 20th-century edifices that functioned as "micro-cities". At Post's suggestion, a structural system of stone was used on the ground story, while brick and terracotta were used on

6102-472: The building. Other statues lined the other halls and stairs in the building. The Herter Brothers mosaic in the lobby was described as being "the largest in America" when it was completed in 1887. The mural was composed of a draped woman with two draped children, flanked by nude figures of Greek warriors. When Equitable was founded in 1859, the company's first "home office" was located at 98 Broadway, in

6215-476: The co-leadership at the firm. One of their initiatives was the establishment of 14 business principles. On November 16, 1981, the firm acquired J. Aron & Company, a commodities trading firm that merged with the Fixed Income division to become known as Fixed Income, Currencies, and Commodities. J. Aron was involved in the coffee and gold markets, and the former CEO of Goldman, Lloyd Blankfein , joined

6328-733: The co-senior partnership in 1990 and pledged to focus on globalization of the firm to strengthen the merger & acquisition and trading business lines. In 1990, the firm introduced paperless trading to the New York Stock Exchange. Rubin left the firm in 1992 to work in the Presidency of Bill Clinton . In 1994, the company launched the Goldman Sachs Commodity Index (GSCI) and opened its first office in China in Beijing . That same year, Jon Corzine became CEO, following

6441-489: The companies launch initial public offerings . In 1869, Goldman Sachs was founded by Marcus Goldman in New York City in a one-room basement office next to a coal chute. In 1882, Goldman's son-in-law Samuel Sachs joined the firm. In 1885, Goldman's son, Henry Goldman , and his son-in-law, Ludwig Dreyfuss, joined the business and the firm adopted its present name, Goldman Sachs & Co. The company pioneered

6554-510: The company to purchase property to the rear and create a law library. The lots at 122–124 Broadway were leased to a Delmonico's restaurant. The New York Times wrote in 1875 that the building's site and facilities allowed it to "embrace perhaps greater advantages than any other commercial building in the City". A large expansion began in March 1875 was completed two months later. Electric lighting

6667-685: The company's headquarters building burned down in 1912, Equitable erected the Equitable Building on the same site in Manhattan. In 1943, during World War II , Equitable began underwriting policies for the War Agencies Employees Protective Association to provide group life insurance to U.S. Government employees working in or around war zones. Through WAEPA, Equitable sold policies to employees of some 40 U.S. agencies, including individuals from

6780-716: The deal were not disclosed. In May 2017, Goldman Sachs purchased $ 2.8 billion (~$ 3.42 billion in 2023) of PDVSA 2022 bonds from the Central Bank of Venezuela during the 2017 Venezuelan protests . In April 2018, Goldman Sachs acquired Clarity Money, a personal finance startup. On September 10, 2018, Goldman Sachs acquired Boyd Corporation from Genstar Capital for $ 3 billion (~$ 3.59 billion in 2023). On May 16, 2019, Goldman Sachs acquired United Capital Financial Advisers, LLC for $ 750 million (~$ 882 million in 2023). In March 2019, Apple, Inc. announced that it would partner with Goldman Sachs to launch

6893-400: The east, and Pine Street to the south. The Equitable Life Building was made of brick , granite , and iron , and was originally built with seven above-ground stories and two basement levels. This count excluded a pavilion in the mansard roof above the seventh story, which would have counted as an eighth floor. Accounts differ on the building's height at the time of its completion, with

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7006-423: The elevators were included after Post and Hyde had insisted on them. To demonstrate his confidence in the elevator, Post offered to take an office on the seventh story, the top rental floor, at a price "based on and equaling the highest rent paid on Broadway" for similar office space. Hyde doubled the offer, which Post accepted. The seven buildings on the site were demolished in mid-1868, and construction on

7119-404: The elevators, the Equitable Life Building had other amenities like electric lighting. After expansion in 1887, the building had nine steel boilers and three hydraulic pumping engines that could pump 7,500 U.S. gallons (28,000 L) per minute, and a 400 horsepower (300 kW) engine that powered the lighting fixtures. Securities were stored in a welded-chrome and Bessemer steel vault above

7232-404: The firm as a result of this merger. In 1983, the firm moved into a newly constructed global headquarters at 85 Broad Street and occupied that building until it moved to its current headquarters in 2009. In 1985, it underwrote the public offering of the real estate investment trust that owned Rockefeller Center , then the largest REIT offering in history. In accordance with the beginning of

7345-565: The firm as a securities trader, where two powers fought for supremacy, one from investment banking and one from securities trading. Levy was a pioneer in block trading and the firm established this trend under his guidance. Due to Weinberg's heavy influence, the firm formed an investment banking division in 1956 in an attempt to shift focus off Weinberg. In 1957, the company's headquarters were relocated to 20 Broad Street , New York City. In 1969, Levy took over Weinberg's role as Senior Partner and built Goldman's trading franchise once again. Levy

7458-574: The firm due to his pro-German stance, Henry Goldman resigned. The Sachs family gained full control of the firm until Waddill Catchings joined the company in 1918. By 1928, Catchings was the Goldman partner with the single largest stake in the firm. In 1919, the company acquired a major interest in Merck & Co. and in 1922, it acquired a major interest in General Foods . On December 4, 1928,

7571-756: The firm launched the Goldman Sachs Trading Corp.Ad, a closed-end fund . The fund failed during the Wall Street Crash of 1929 , amid accusations that Goldman had engaged in share price manipulation and insider trading . In 1930, during the Great Depression , the firm ousted Catchings, and Sidney Weinberg assumed the role of senior partner. Weinberg shifted Goldman's focus away from trading and toward investment banking . His actions helped to restore some of Goldman's tarnished reputation. Under Weinberg's leadership, Goldman

7684-433: The firm's large profits during the crisis. The pair, members of Goldman's structured products group in New York City , made a profit of $ 4 billion by "betting" on a collapse in the subprime market and shorting mortgage-related securities. By summer 2007, they persuaded colleagues to see their point of view and convinced skeptical risk management executives. The firm initially avoided large subprime write-downs and achieved

7797-404: The first Fed facility ever to provide overnight loans to investment banks, loaned Goldman Sachs a total of $ 589 billion against collateral such as corporate market instruments and mortgage-backed securities . The Term Securities Lending Facility (TSLF), which allows primary dealers to borrow liquid Treasury securities for one month in exchange for less liquid collateral, loaned Goldman Sachs

7910-415: The first-ever skyscrapers, or the next major skyscrapers after the Equitable Life Building because of their substantial height increase. While Robert A. M. Stern did not consider the building to be a skyscraper, he wrote that the structure was "the city's, and therefore the world's, first modern office building". Goldman Sachs The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. ( / s æ k s / SAKS )

8023-693: The largest electric utility in Denmark, from the Danish government after the company needed fresh capital but was unable to attract state funding. The sale led to protests by the public in Copenhagen and led to the resignation of six cabinet ministers and the withdrawal of the Socialist People's Party from Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt 's leftist governing coalition. Protesters were wary of Goldman having an ownership stake due to its role in

8136-404: The last two major investment banks in the United States, both confirmed that they would become traditional bank holding companies . The Federal Reserve's approval of their bid to become banks ended the business model of an independent securities firm, 75 years after Congress separated them from deposit-taking lenders, and capped weeks of chaos that sent Lehman Brothers into bankruptcy and led to

8249-470: The late 1880s, the lobby was expanded to stretch the entire block from Broadway to Nassau Street. The enlarged lobby was composed of a 44-foot-wide (13 m), 100-foot-long (30 m) arcade lined with convenience shops, post office boxes, a restaurant, and a barber. The arcade also included a barrel-vaulted ceiling with skylights, as well as a mosaic by the Herter Brothers ; one critic described

8362-412: The leadership of Equitable's president Henry Baldwin Hyde . It was the world's first office building to feature passenger elevators and consequently became successful attracting tenants. The Equitable Life Building was expanded numerous times; after the construction of annexes during the late 1880s, the building occupied its entire block, bounded by Broadway and Cedar, Pine and Nassau streets. Although it

8475-425: The lots at Broadway and Cedar Street began the same year. The first portion of the structure opened on May 1, 1870. The building had cost nearly $ 4.16 million (equal to $ 94 million in 2023). Despite Equitable's growing assets—which had increased from $ 5 million in 1868 to $ 11 million in 1870—competitors and the public accused the company and Hyde of "extravagance". The Equitable Life Building

8588-458: The next two years, the company acquired seven lots at 116–124 Broadway and 84–86 Cedar Street; the lots totaled 8,000 square feet (740 m ) and had cost an average $ 59.62 per square foot ($ 641.7/m ). When Hyde suggested to Equitable's building committee he wanted to build an eight-story edifice, the committee viewed the proposal skeptically; Hyde stated the building would include elevators. The committee looked at buildings in other cities across

8701-439: The outer structural walls remained standing after the blaze. Six people died, including five employees and one firefighter. Three of the victims had been trapped on the roof while trying to escape. The money in the vaults, appraised at $ 385 million, was unscathed. Though the building was not covered by insurance policies, Equitable suffered a relatively small loss, since the building was valued at less than $ 3 million,

8814-494: The partners, the company became a public company via an initial public offering in May 1999. Goldman sold 12.6% of the company to the public, and after the IPO, 48.3% of the company was held by 221 former partners, 21.2% of the company was held by non-partner employees, and the remaining 17.9% was held by retired Goldman partners and two long-time investors, Sumitomo Bank Ltd. and Assn, the investing arm of Kamehameha Schools . The shares were priced at $ 53 each at listing. After

8927-420: The public offering of the shares. The expected close date was stated by the company at the time as November 13, 2019. This brought to a close a long and largely successful chapter in the Equitable's history – the end of the AXA Group ownership of the company. On January 14, 2020, Equitable unveiled its new branding. In addition to an operating name change, the refreshed brand included a new logo, representative of

9040-499: The rest of the building, exacerbated by the open stairways and elevator shafts. Fire crews from Manhattan and Brooklyn were called to put out the blaze, holding up traffic on the Brooklyn Bridge and nearby streets. The outside temperature at the time was 18 °F (−8 °C), causing the water from the fire trucks to freeze on the building. The tower's height was a disadvantage: the fire trucks' ladders could not reach

9153-602: The retirement of Friedman as general partner. Rubin had drawn criticism in Congress for using a Treasury Department account under his personal control to distribute $ 20 billion to bail out Mexican bonds, of which Goldman was a key distributor. On November 22, 1994, the Mexican Bolsa stock market admitted Goldman Sachs and one other firm to operate on that market. In 1994, the Mexican peso crisis threatened to wipe out

9266-430: The rushed sale of Merrill Lynch to Bank of America On September 23, 2008, Berkshire Hathaway agreed to purchase $ 5 billion in Goldman's preferred stock, and also received warrants to buy another $ 5 billion in Goldman's common stock within five years. The company also raised $ 5 billion via a public offering of shares at $ 123 per share. Goldman also received a $ 10 billion preferred stock investment from

9379-572: The same building as Hyde's previous employers, the Mutual Life Insurance Company of New York . American life insurance had begun "to take on the properties of an important institution" according to the National Park Service , and life insurance firms were some of the first companies to build high-profile skyscrapers. Further, many firms in the Financial District were building to the north of Wall Street ,

9492-749: The same case in other countries, Goldman Sachs agreed in October of the same year to pay more than $ 2.9 billion, with over $ 2 billion going to fines imposed in the US. Effective July 1, 2020, the firm no longer manages initial public offerings of a company without "at least one diverse board candidate, with a focus on women" in the U.S. and in Europe. In August 2021, Goldman Sachs announced that it had agreed to acquire NN Investment Partners , which had US$ 335 billion in assets under management , for €1.7 billion from NN Group . In September 2021, Goldman Sachs announced to acquire GreenSky for about $ 2.24 billion (~$ 2.48 billion in 2023) and completed

9605-501: The second floor, but by 1862, they leased additional space on the third floor. In the mid-1860s Equitable leased more space at 94 and 96 Broadway owned by different landlords. By 1867, Equitable had $ 82.5 million of insurance in force (equal to $ 1.275 billion in 2023). The company's success led Equitable's board to hold a meeting in December 1865, because the firm needed extra space and had already been subjected to two fires. Over

9718-426: The son of the founder and a vice president of the company, was falsely accused through a media smear campaign initiated by Alexander and board directors E. H. Harriman , Henry Clay Frick and J.P. Morgan of charging a fabulous $ 200,000 Versailles -themed affair to the company. The repercussions rocked Wall Street and resulted in an investigation of the entire insurance industry by the State of New York. After

9831-455: The third largest life insurance company in the country, formed Equitable Real Estate Investment Management, a subsidiary used by Equitable Life to develop and finance new real estate projects and manage the US$ 20 billion worth of real estate under Equitable's control. In December 1990, Equitable announced its decision to demutualize under New York's liberalizing laws. This was intended to enable

9944-457: The time, prestigious firms did not rent offices above the second floor, since that entailed climbing more flights of stairs, exhausting the workers. Initially, the Equitable Life Building had two steam elevators, but four more were added during the mid-1870s. Four additional elevators were installed in the late 1880s, bringing the elevator count to 10. The elevators and the views from the top floors attracted thousands of passersby. In addition to

10057-601: The traditional center of commerce in the neighborhood. Hyde was a member of the Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church , which helped contribute funding to get Equitable started. William C. Alexander , brother of the church's pastor James Waddel Alexander , was Equitable's first president. The company grew quickly and moved to 92 Broadway in December 1859; at the time, Equitable had $ 1.14 million of insurance in force (equal to $ 31 million in 2023). Initially, Equitable occupied four rooms on

10170-631: The trajectory of both companies. By 1997, the assets of the U.S. operation, the Equitable Insurance Group, had reached nearly a quarter of a trillion dollars, and by 2003, AXA Equitable Insurance Company was the leading carrier in the world with more than 50 million clients, in more than 50 countries, and with nearly a trillion dollars in client assets. By 2018, AXA, facing tougher European solvency laws, decided to re-balance its operations from life and annuities and towards property and casualty – from financial risks to insurance risks. As

10283-412: The upper stories, and lifelines from nearby buildings snapped before they could be secured onto the building. There were several high-profile rescues, including that of William Giblin, president of major tenant Mercantile Safe Deposit Company, who had been trapped in a vault. The fire was brought under control at about 9:30 p.m. EST. Smoke continued to billow from the site two days later, and two of

10396-473: The upper stories. The base was made of "darkish" granite from Quincy, Massachusetts , while the upper stories were clad with lighter granite from Concord, New Hampshire . Behind the granite cladding were walls made of hard-burnt brick from the North River ; this brick was also used for party walls and partitions. As built, the articulation of the second and third stories was designed as if they were

10509-815: The use of commercial paper for entrepreneurs and joined the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in 1896. By 1898, the firm's capital stood at $ 1.6 million. It opened offices in Boston and Chicago in 1900, San Francisco in 1918, and Philadelphia and St. Louis in 1920. Goldman entered the initial public offering market in 1906 when it took Sears, Roebuck and Company public. The deal was facilitated by Henry Goldman's personal friendship with Julius Rosenwald , an owner of Sears. Other underwriting work for initial public offerings followed, including those of General Cigar Company also in 1906, F. W. Woolworth Company in 1912, and Continental Can . The firm

10622-612: The utility in 2017. In January 2014, the Libyan Investment Authority (LIA) filed a lawsuit against Goldman for $ 1 billion after the firm lost 98% of the $ 1.3 billion the LIA invested with Goldman in 2007. The losses stemmed from derivatives trades that earned Goldman $ 350 million in fees. In court documents, Goldman admitted to having used small gifts, occasional travel and an internship to gain access to Libya's sovereign wealth fund. In October 2016, after

10735-591: The value of Mexico's bonds held by Goldman Sachs. In 1994, Goldman financed Rockefeller Center in a deal that allowed it to take an ownership interest in 1996, and sold Rockefeller Center to Tishman Speyer in 2000. In April 1996, Goldman was the lead underwriter of the initial public offering of Yahoo! . In 1998, it was the co-lead manager of the ¥2 trillion (yen) NTT DoCoMo IPO. In 1999, Goldman acquired Hull Trading Company for $ 531 million (~$ 913 million in 2023), as part of its shift towards electronic trading . After decades of debate among

10848-400: The windows. Equitable leased the basement and first floor to banks, taking the second and third floors for its own offices; commercial tenants leased the remaining floors. The Equitable offices featured the world's "most complete and imposing business hall", a domed clerking hall measuring 35 by 100 feet (11 by 30 m) and supported by twelve marble-clad Corinthian columns . Also within

10961-460: The workforce was difficult, especially for women. The goal of the Returnship program was to offer a chance at temporary employment for workers. Goldman Sachs holds the trademark for the term 'Returnship'. According to a 2009 BrandAsset Valuator survey taken of 17,000 people nationwide, the firm's reputation suffered in 2008 and 2009, and rival Morgan Stanley was respected more than Goldman Sachs,

11074-515: Was added on a trial basis in 1878, making the Equitable Life Building the city's first office building with such lighting. The Equitable Life Building was extremely profitable: in 1892, Equitable's annual income from renting was estimated to be $ 300,000, which real-estate developers estimated was four percent of the true value of the building. In 1885, Equitable filed plans with the New York City Department of Buildings to build

11187-426: Was advertised as fireproof, the Equitable Life Building was destroyed in a 1912 fire that killed six people. The 40-story Equitable Building was completed on the site in 1915. Arthur Gilman and Edward H. Kendall designed the Equitable Life Building, with George B. Post as a consulting engineer. The building occupied the entire block bordered by Broadway to the west, Cedar Street to the north, Nassau Street to

11300-433: Was also a law library with nearly 40,000 volumes, as well as a separate insurance library with 8,000 volumes. Prior to the late 1880s, the seventh floor contained suites for the building's janitorial staff; after the renovation, the seventh and eighth floors were furnished with offices, similar to the fourth through sixth floors. There were also three dining rooms in the Equitable Life Building. The Equitable Life Building

11413-408: Was an innovator at establishing the price–earnings ratio , instead of book value , as a method for valuing companies, and was therefore able to raise funds for retailers and companies with few hard assets. In 1912, Henry S. Bowers became the first non-member of the founding family to become a partner of the company and share in its profits. In 1917, under growing pressure from the other partners in

11526-449: Was described by The Wall Street Journal as a "big, secretive hedge fund"—the "Cadillac of a fleet of alternative investments" that had made millions for Goldman Sachs by 2006. By mid-2008, assets under management (AUM) of the fund had declined to $ 2.5 billion, by June 2011, AUM was less than $ 1.7 billion, and by September 2011, after suffering losses that year, AUM was approximately $ 1 billion. In 2013, Goldman underwrote

11639-548: Was embroiled in the 1Malaysia Development Berhad scandal , related to Malaysia's sovereign wealth fund , 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB). The bank paid a fine of $ 2.9 billion under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act , the largest such fine to date. In July 2020, Goldman Sachs agreed on a $ 3.9 billion settlement in Malaysia for criminal charges related to the 1MDB scandal. For charges brought for

11752-532: Was fired after hiding an $ 8.3 billion unauthorized trade involving derivatives on the S&;P 500 index by making "multiple false entries" into a Goldman trading system, with the objective of protecting his year-end bonus of $ 1.5 million. The trades cost the company $ 118 million. In 2013, Taylor plead guilty to charges and was sentenced to 9 months in prison and was ordered to repay the $ 118 million loss. On September 21, 2008, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley,

11865-408: Was hired to produce Protection , a group of statues for the facade of the Equitable Life Building. Ward carved a group that resembled a vignette used on Equitable's insurance policies . Because of defects in the first carving, Ward commissioned a second carving weighing 10 short tons (8.9 long tons; 9.1 t), which was made from one block of marble. The final carving depicted a goddess protecting

11978-455: Was large, and the resulting lawsuits, notably by the SEC , threatened the partnership capital, survival, and reputation of the firm. It was this bankruptcy that resulted in credit ratings for every issuer of commercial paper today by several credit rating services. Under the direction of Senior Partner Stanley R. Miller, the firm opened its first international office in London in 1970 and created

12091-427: Was made of wood and slate. Dumbwaiters in the tile shaft had wooden doors and platforms, while the rest of the building had massive hardwood trim, wooden window sash, and wood-and-glass partitions that were ineffective against fire. The Equitable Life Building also had no automatic sprinklers or chemical extinguishers. The storage vaults were fireproof and survived the 1912 fire. The sculptor John Quincy Adams Ward

12204-596: Was more lavish than other office buildings because of its construction materials and the use of elevators. The building was profitable, earning $ 136,000 a year in rent by 1871, with 400 people working inside the building. Its features led other landlords to add elevators and additional floors to their buildings. The design inspired the addition of mansard roofs to other insurance buildings nearby, including those of Mutual Life, New York Life , Metropolitan Life , and Germania Life . Equitable's operations increased further, so that by 1872 workers were cramped for space, leading

12317-405: Was once "one of the biggest and best performing hedge funds in the world" with more than $ 12 billion assets under management (AUM) at its peak in 2007. Global Alpha used quantitative analysis and computer-driven models to invest, using high-frequency trading . It was founded by Cliff Asness and Mark Carhart , who developed the statistical models on which the trading was based. Global Alpha

12430-441: Was the builder. It was during the late-1880s expansion that the block-through lobby was added, and the Cafe Savarin was opened. At the time, the Equitable Life Building occupied the entire block except for the corner lots on Nassau Street. The author R. Carlyle Buley stated that Equitable did not assume control of the entire block until 1906, when it bought the lots at 17 and 23–25 Nassau Street. These buildings were respectively

12543-619: Was the first office building in the world to feature passenger elevators, with hydraulic elevators made by the Otis Elevator Company . Before the structure's completion, there were three elevators in the city—one each at the Astor House , the Fifth Avenue Hotel , and a private apartment building; office building heights had never exceeded four stories. Hyde had been advised against constructing elevators; at

12656-414: Was the lead advisor on the $ 657 million initial public offering of Ford Motor Company in 1956, a major victory at the time, as well as the $ 350 million debenture offering by Sears Roebuck in 1958. Under Weinberg's leadership, the firm started an investment research division and a municipal bond department, and it became an early innovator in risk arbitrage . In the 1950s, Gus Levy joined

12769-803: Was the right thing to do, in light of "the fact that we are part of an industry that's directly associated with the ongoing economic distress". Cuomo called the move "appropriate and prudent", and urged the executives of other banks to follow the firm's lead and refuse bonus payments. In June 2009, Goldman Sachs repaid the U.S. Treasury's TARP investment, with 23% interest (in the form of $ 318 million in preferred dividend payments and $ 1.418 billion in warrant redemptions). On March 18, 2011, Goldman Sachs received Federal Reserve approval to buy back Berkshire's preferred stock in Goldman. In December 2009, Goldman announced that its top 30 executives would be paid year-end bonuses in restricted stock that they cannot sell for five years, with clawback provisions. During

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