Goldman Sachs is 'very open' to acquisitions: CFO
Reuters
Published Mar 10, 2020 03:51PM ET
Goldman Sachs is 'very open' to acquisitions: CFO
By Elizabeth Dilts Marshall
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Goldman Sachs Group Inc (N:GS) Chief Financial Officer Stephen Scherr said on Tuesday the bank is "very open" to acquisitions, especially those that would speed the growth of its existing businesses.
""We're ... very open to the proposition of acquisitions that fill gaps or accelerate elements of our growth plan," Scherr said at a conference convened via conference call and webcast, rather than in-person, due to concerns about the coronavirus outbreak.
There has been wide investor speculation about Goldman's appetite and ability to do mergers or acquisitions since rival Wall Street bank Morgan Stanley (N:MS) announced plans last month to buy discount broker E*Trade (O:ETFC).
Goldman Chief Executive David Solomon has set ambitious targets for the bank to grow its fledgling online consumer bank, Marcus, its credit card business and cash management platform. But industry insiders are skeptical that it can grow quickly without doing a deal.
Scherr said the bank is not currently looking to do "larger material transactions ... in the near term."
"I think you'll find us to be much more acquisitive in the context of accelerating and facilitating the growth of business initiatives that are there, none of which would necessarily present themselves as... material to the firm overall," he added.
Scherr also touched on the coronavirus and its impact on the bank's day-to-day operations and markets.
He said the bank currently has no known cases of coronavirus among its staff, but that it continues to roll out precautionary measures, including splitting teams up to work at separate locations and having some staff work from home on a rotating basis.
Scherr said the bank is monitoring risk across all market sectors and has seen a "reduction broadly in liquidity" and some challenges in the "cost of funding." But he said there are no major signs that corporate clients are under stress.
Get The News You Want
Written By: Reuters
Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.