Just more than a week after Goldman Sachs offered its most prized clients a chance to invest in Facebook, the firm on Monday withdrew the opportunity from clients in the United States because of worries that the deal could run afoul of securities regulations.
The decision is a considered a serious embarrassment for Goldman, which had marketed the investment to its wealthiest clients, including corporate magnates and directors of the nation’s largest companies....
...the Facebook plan is now likely to raise new questions about whether Goldman tried to push regulatory boundaries once again.
bwnbwn
1:01 pm on Jan 18, 2011 (gmt 0)
You know I am getting really sick of this DA and all the crap he has been pulling.
Whitey
1:19 pm on Jan 18, 2011 (gmt 0)
The firm planned to sell as much as $1.5 billion of closely held Facebook to clients of its private wealth unit.
“You would have thought that this was an issue from the start, they should have realized this up front,” said Peter Hahn, a lecturer in corporate finance at Cass Business School in London. “If I invited my 500 best friends to a party, would it be a secret? And the answer is no.” [businessweek.com...]
It's no accident IMO , but let's see ...
ByronM
2:34 pm on Jan 18, 2011 (gmt 0)
Should end the banking backed stock securities markets and only allow open auction markets and just have the "backing" company manage the sale/auction thereof and collect a small fee. No more back-room deals and inflated valuations.
Robert Charlton
8:25 am on Jan 19, 2011 (gmt 0)
In line with Whitey's post above, here's a follow-up 4.5-min Public Radio story and interview with Andrew Ross Sorkin, the NYT reporter who broke the story....
...if you are pursuing a private offering, the offering must remain private.
aleksl
3:28 pm on Jan 19, 2011 (gmt 0)
This is how STUPID Goldman Sucks thinks everyone with the money is:
Even with $50 billion valuation (not $150 b that Goldman Sachs are "selling" that they don't own yet), an internet social network (worthless from the point of view of the real economy) becomes bigger THAN THE ENTIRE SILVER MARKET.
Let me repeat it. Entire SILVER (physical silver) market is right now less than Facebook.
This is INSANE, more insane than the tech bubble of early 2000th.
James2
4:54 pm on Jan 19, 2011 (gmt 0)
where did you get the entire silver market value figure from?
"We completely understand that clients are disappointed, and we are sorry about that," the Goldman spokesman said. "But our view was that it would not have been prudent for Facebook or for investors to have proceeded with the offer in the U.S."
frontpage
3:57 am on Jan 20, 2011 (gmt 0)
How does Goldman Sachs reward US taxpayers who bailed them out of bankruptcy last year? By banning those same citizens from buying stock from them.
I am prohibited by the TOS of this website to print what I really think about his s-bags.
Goldman Sachs sent $4.3 billion in federal tax money to 32 entities, including many overseas banks, hedge funds and pensions, according to information made public Friday night.
MarkAse
2:41 pm on Jan 23, 2011 (gmt 0)
Talk about dumb, just dumb on their part. Goldman would have known exactly what going to happen if that info was released.
