UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
Form 10-K
ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF
THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2014 |
Commission File Number: 001-14965 |
The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
Delaware | 13-4019460 | |
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization) |
(I.R.S. Employer Identification No.) | |
200 West Street | 10282 | |
New York, N.Y. (Address of principal executive offices) |
(Zip Code) |
(212) 902-1000
(Registrants telephone number, including area code)
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
Title of each class: | Name of each exchange on which registered: | |
Common stock, par value $.01 per share |
New York Stock Exchange | |
Depositary Shares, Each Representing 1/1,000th Interest in a Share of Floating Rate Non-Cumulative Preferred Stock, Series A |
New York Stock Exchange | |
Depositary Shares, Each Representing 1/1,000th Interest in a Share of 6.20% Non-Cumulative Preferred Stock, Series B |
New York Stock Exchange | |
Depositary Shares, Each Representing 1/1,000th Interest in a Share of Floating Rate Non-Cumulative Preferred Stock, Series C |
New York Stock Exchange | |
Depositary Shares, Each Representing 1/1,000th Interest in a Share of Floating Rate Non-Cumulative Preferred Stock, Series D |
New York Stock Exchange | |
Depositary Shares, Each Representing 1/1,000th Interest in a Share of Floating Rate Non-Cumulative Preferred Stock, Series I |
New York Stock Exchange | |
Depositary Shares, Each Representing 1/1,000th Interest in a Share of 5.50% Fixed-to-Floating Rate Non-Cumulative Preferred Stock, Series J |
New York Stock Exchange | |
Depositary Shares, Each Representing 1/1,000th Interest in a Share of 6.375% Fixed-to-Floating Rate Non-Cumulative Preferred Stock, Series K |
New York Stock Exchange | |
See Exhibit 99.2 for debt and trust securities registered under Section 12(b) of the Act |
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: None
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act.
x Yes ¨ No
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Act.
¨ Yes x No
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.
x Yes ¨ No
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate Web site, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files).
x Yes ¨ No
Indicate by check mark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to Item 405 of Regulation S-K is not contained herein, and will not be contained, to the best of registrants knowledge, in definitive proxy or information statements incorporated by reference in Part III of the Annual Report on Form 10-K or any amendment to the Annual Report on Form 10-K. x
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or a smaller reporting company. See the definitions of large accelerated filer, accelerated filer and smaller reporting company in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.
Large accelerated filer x |
Accelerated filer ¨ |
Non-accelerated filer ¨ |
Smaller reporting company ¨ | |||
(Do not check if a smaller reporting company) |
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act). ¨ Yes x No
As of June 30, 2014, the aggregate market value of the common stock of the registrant held by non-affiliates of the registrant was approximately $72.4 billion.
As of February 6, 2015, there were 435,621,157 shares of the registrants common stock outstanding.
Documents incorporated by reference: Portions of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc.s Proxy Statement for its 2015 Annual Meeting of Shareholders are incorporated by reference in the Annual Report on Form 10-K in response to Part III, Items 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14.
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC.
ANNUAL REPORT ON FORM 10-K FOR THE FISCAL YEAR ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2014
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II-1 |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Goldman Sachs is a leading global investment banking, securities and investment management firm that provides a wide range of financial services to a substantial and diversified client base that includes corporations, financial institutions, governments and high-net-worth individuals.
When we use the terms Goldman Sachs, the firm, we, us and our, we mean The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (Group Inc.), a Delaware corporation, and its consolidated subsidiaries.
References to the 2014 Form 10-K are to our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2014. All references to 2014, 2013 and 2012 refer to our years ended, or the dates, as the context requires, December 31, 2014, December 31, 2013 and December 31, 2012, respectively.
Group Inc. is a bank holding company and a financial holding company regulated by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Federal Reserve Board). Our U.S. depository institution subsidiary, Goldman Sachs Bank USA (GS Bank USA), is a New York State-chartered bank.
As of December 2014, we had offices in over 30 countries and 49% of our total staff was based outside the Americas. Our clients are located worldwide, and we are an active participant in financial markets around the world. In 2014, we generated 42% of our net revenues outside the Americas. For more information about our geographic results, see Note 25 to the consolidated financial statements in Part II, Item 8 of the 2014 Form 10-K.
Our Business Segments and Segment Operating Results
We report our activities in four business segments: Investment Banking, Institutional Client Services, Investing & Lending and Investment Management. The chart below presents our four business segments.
Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K | 1 |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
The table below presents our segment operating results.
Year Ended December 1 | % of 2014 | |||||||||||||||
$ in millions | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | |
Net Revenues |
| ||||||||||
Investment Banking |
||||||||||||||||
Net revenues |
$ 6,464 | $ 6,004 | $ 4,926 | 19% | ||||||||||||
Operating expenses |
3,688 | 3,479 | 3,333 | |||||||||||||
Pre-tax earnings |
$ 2,776 | $ 2,525 | $ 1,593 | |||||||||||||
Institutional Client Services |
|
|||||||||||||||
Net revenues |
$15,197 | $15,721 | $18,124 | 44% | ||||||||||||
Operating expenses |
10,880 | 11,792 | 12,490 | |||||||||||||
Pre-tax earnings |
$ 4,317 | $ 3,929 | $ 5,634 | |||||||||||||
Investing & Lending |
||||||||||||||||
Net revenues |
$ 6,825 | $ 7,018 | $ 5,891 | 20% | ||||||||||||
Operating expenses |
2,819 | 2,686 | 2,668 | |||||||||||||
Pre-tax earnings |
$ 4,006 | $ 4,332 | $ 3,223 | |||||||||||||
Investment Management |
|
|||||||||||||||
Net revenues |
$ 6,042 | $ 5,463 | $ 5,222 | 17% | ||||||||||||
Operating expenses |
4,647 | 4,357 | 4,296 | |||||||||||||
Pre-tax earnings |
$ 1,395 | $ 1,106 | $ 926 | |||||||||||||
Total net revenues |
$34,528 | $34,206 | $34,163 | |||||||||||||
Total operating expenses 2 |
22,171 | 22,469 | 22,956 | |||||||||||||
Total pre-tax earnings |
$12,357 | $11,737 | $11,207 |
1. | Financial information concerning our business segments for 2014, 2013 and 2012 is included in Managements Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations and the Financial Statements and Supplementary Data, which are in Part II, Items 7 and 8, respectively, of the 2014 Form 10-K. See Note 25 to the consolidated financial statements in Part II, Item 8 of the 2014 Form 10-K for a summary of our total net revenues, pre-tax earnings and net earnings by geographic region. |
2. | Includes charitable contributions that have not been allocated to our segments of $137 million for 2014, $155 million for 2013 and $169 million for 2012. Operating expenses related to real estate-related exit costs, previously not allocated to our segments, have now been allocated. This allocation reflects the change in the manner in which management views the performance of our segments. Reclassifications have been made to previously reported segment amounts to conform to the current presentation. |
Investment Banking serves public and private sector clients around the world. We provide financial advisory services and help companies raise capital to strengthen and grow their businesses. We seek to develop and maintain long-term relationships with a diverse global group of institutional clients, including governments, states and municipalities. Our goal is to deliver to our institutional clients the entire resources of the firm in a seamless fashion, with investment banking serving as the main initial point of contact with Goldman Sachs.
Financial Advisory. Financial Advisory includes strategic advisory assignments with respect to mergers and acquisitions, divestitures, corporate defense activities, restructurings, spin-offs and risk management. In particular, we help clients execute large, complex transactions for which we provide multiple services, including acquisition financing and cross-border structuring expertise. Financial Advisory also includes revenues from derivative transactions directly related to these client advisory assignments.
We also assist our clients in managing their asset and liability exposures and their capital. In addition, we may provide lending commitments and bank loan and bridge loan facilities in connection with our advisory assignments.
Underwriting. The other core activity of Investment Banking is helping companies raise capital to fund their businesses. As a financial intermediary, our job is to match the capital of our investing clients who aim to grow the savings of millions of people with the needs of our public and private sector clients who need financing to generate growth, create jobs and deliver products and services. Our underwriting activities include public offerings and private placements, including local and cross-border transactions, of a wide range of securities and other financial instruments. Underwriting also includes revenues from derivative transactions entered into with public and private sector clients in connection with our underwriting activities.
Equity Underwriting. We underwrite common and preferred stock and convertible and exchangeable securities. We regularly receive mandates for large, complex transactions and have held a leading position in worldwide public common stock offerings and worldwide initial public offerings for many years.
Debt Underwriting. We underwrite and originate various types of debt instruments, including investment-grade and high-yield debt, bank loans and bridge loans, and emerging- and growth-market debt, which may be issued by, among others, corporate, sovereign, municipal and agency issuers. In addition, we underwrite and originate structured securities, which include mortgage-related securities and other asset-backed securities.
2 | Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K | |||
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Institutional Client Services serves our clients who come to the firm to buy and sell financial products, raise funding and manage risk. We do this by acting as a market maker and offering market expertise on a global basis. Institutional Client Services makes markets and facilitates client transactions in fixed income, equity, currency and commodity products. In addition, we make markets in and clear client transactions on major stock, options and futures exchanges worldwide. Market makers provide liquidity and play a critical role in price discovery, which contributes to the overall efficiency of the capital markets. Our willingness to make markets, commit capital and take risk in a broad range of products is crucial to our client relationships.
Our clients are primarily institutions that are professional market participants, including investment entities whose ultimate customers include individual investors investing for their retirement, buying insurance or putting aside surplus cash in a deposit account.
Through our global sales force, we maintain relationships with our clients, receiving orders and distributing investment research, trading ideas, market information and analysis. As a market maker, we provide prices to clients globally across thousands of products in all major asset classes and markets. At times we take the other side of transactions ourselves if a buyer or seller is not readily available and at other times we connect our clients to other parties who want to transact. Much of this connectivity between the firm and its clients is maintained on technology platforms and operates globally wherever and whenever markets are open for trading.
Institutional Client Services and our other businesses are supported by our Global Investment Research division, which, as of December 2014, provided fundamental research on more than 3,600 companies worldwide and more than 40 national economies, as well as on industries, currencies and commodities.
Institutional Client Services generates revenues in four ways:
| In large, highly liquid markets (such as markets for U.S. Treasury bills, large capitalization S&P 500 stocks or certain mortgage pass-through securities), we execute a high volume of transactions for our clients for modest spreads and fees; |
| In less liquid markets (such as mid-cap corporate bonds, growth market currencies or certain non-agency mortgage-backed securities), we execute transactions for our clients for spreads and fees that are generally somewhat larger; |
| We also structure and execute transactions involving customized or tailor-made products that address our clients risk exposures, investment objectives or other complex needs (such as a jet fuel hedge for an airline); and |
| We provide financing to our clients for their securities trading activities, as well as securities lending and other prime brokerage services. |
Institutional Client Services activities are organized by asset class and include both cash and derivative instruments. Cash refers to trading the underlying instrument (such as a stock, bond or barrel of oil). Derivative refers to instruments that derive their value from underlying asset prices, indices, reference rates and other inputs, or a combination of these factors (such as an option, which is the right or obligation to buy or sell a certain bond or stock index on a specified date in the future at a certain price, or an interest rate swap, which is the agreement to convert a fixed rate of interest into a floating rate or vice versa).
Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K | 3 |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Fixed Income, Currency and Commodities Client Execution. Includes interest rate products, credit products, mortgages, currencies and commodities.
| Interest Rate Products. Government bonds, money market instruments such as commercial paper, treasury bills, repurchase agreements and other highly liquid securities and instruments, as well as interest rate swaps, options and other derivatives. |
| Credit Products. Investment-grade corporate securities, high-yield securities, credit derivatives, bank and bridge loans, municipal securities, emerging market and distressed debt, and trade claims. |
| Mortgages. Commercial mortgage-related securities, loans and derivatives, residential mortgage-related securities, loans and derivatives (including U.S. government agency-issued collateralized mortgage obligations, other prime, subprime and Alt-A securities and loans), and other asset-backed securities, loans and derivatives. |
| Currencies. Most currencies, including growth-market currencies. |
| Commodities. Crude oil and petroleum products, natural gas, base, precious and other metals, electricity, coal, agricultural and other commodity products. |
Equities. Includes equities client execution, commissions and fees, and securities services.
Equities Client Execution. We make markets in equity securities and equity-related products, including convertible securities, options, futures and over-the-counter (OTC) derivative instruments, on a global basis. As a principal, we facilitate client transactions by providing liquidity to our clients with large blocks of stocks or derivatives, requiring the commitment of our capital.
We also structure and make markets in derivatives on indices, industry groups, financial measures and individual company stocks. We develop strategies and provide information about portfolio hedging and restructuring and asset allocation transactions for our clients. We also work with our clients to create specially tailored instruments to enable sophisticated investors to establish or liquidate investment positions or undertake hedging strategies. We are one of the leading participants in the trading and development of equity derivative instruments.
Our exchange-based market-making activities include making markets in stocks and exchange-traded funds, futures and options on major exchanges worldwide.
Commissions and Fees. We generate commissions and fees from executing and clearing institutional client transactions on major stock, options and futures exchanges worldwide, as well as OTC transactions. We provide our clients with access to a broad spectrum of equity execution services, including electronic low-touch access and more traditional high-touch execution. While the majority of our equity trading activity is low-touch, the majority of our net revenues continue to be derived from our high-touch activity. We expect both types of activity to remain important.
Securities Services. Includes financing, securities lending and other prime brokerage services.
| Financing Services. We provide financing to our clients for their securities trading activities through margin loans that are collateralized by securities, cash or other acceptable collateral. We earn a spread equal to the difference between the amount we pay for funds and the amount we receive from our client. |
| Securities Lending Services. We provide services that principally involve borrowing and lending securities to cover institutional clients short sales and borrowing securities to cover our short sales and otherwise to make deliveries into the market. In addition, we are an active participant in broker-to-broker securities lending and third-party agency lending activities. |
| Other Prime Brokerage Services. We earn fees by providing clearing, settlement and custody services globally. In addition, we provide our hedge fund and other clients with a technology platform and reporting which enables them to monitor their security portfolios and manage risk exposures. |
4 | Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Our investing and lending activities, which are typically longer-term, include the firms investing and relationship lending activities across various asset classes, primarily debt securities and loans, public and private equity securities, and real estate. These activities include investing directly in publicly and privately traded securities and in loans, and also through certain investment funds that we manage. We manage a diversified global portfolio of investments in equity securities and debt and other investments in privately negotiated transactions, leveraged buyouts, acquisitions and investments in funds managed by external parties. We also provide financing to our clients.
Equity Securities. We make corporate, real estate and infrastructure equity-related investments.
Debt Securities and Loans. We make corporate, real estate, infrastructure and other debt investments. In addition, we provide credit to corporate clients through loan facilities and to high-net-worth individuals primarily through secured loans.
Other. Our other investments include consolidated investments, for which we have an exit strategy and which are engaged in activities that are not closely related to our principal businesses.
Investment Management provides investment and wealth advisory services to help clients preserve and grow their financial assets. Our clients include institutions and high-net-worth individuals, as well as retail investors who access our products through a network of third-party distributors around the world.
We manage client assets across a broad range of asset classes and investment strategies, including equity, fixed income and alternative investments. Alternative investments primarily include hedge funds, credit funds, private equity, real estate, currencies, commodities, and asset allocation strategies. Our investment offerings include those managed on a fiduciary basis by our portfolio managers as well as strategies managed by third-party managers. We offer our investments in a variety of structures, including separately managed accounts, mutual funds, private partnerships, and other commingled vehicles.
We also provide customized investment advisory solutions designed to address our clients investment needs. These solutions begin with identifying clients objectives and continue through portfolio construction, ongoing asset allocation and risk management and investment realization. We draw from a variety of third-party managers as well as our proprietary offerings to implement solutions for clients.
We supplement our investment advisory solutions for high-net-worth clients with wealth advisory services that include income and liability management, trust and estate planning, philanthropic giving and tax planning. We also use the firms global securities and derivatives market-making capabilities to address clients specific investment needs.
Management and Other Fees. The majority of revenues in management and other fees is comprised of asset-based fees on client assets. The fees that we charge vary by asset class and are affected by investment performance as well as asset inflows and redemptions. Other fees we receive include financial counseling fees generated through our wealth advisory services and fees related to the administration of real estate assets.
Assets under supervision include assets under management and other client assets. Assets under management include client assets where we earn a fee for managing assets on a discretionary basis. This includes net assets in our mutual funds, hedge funds, credit funds and private equity funds (including real estate funds), and separately managed accounts for institutional and individual investors. Other client assets include client assets invested with third-party managers, bank deposits and advisory relationships where we earn a fee for advisory and other services, but do not have investment discretion. Assets under supervision do not include the self-directed brokerage assets of our clients. Long-term assets under supervision represent assets under supervision excluding liquidity products. Liquidity products represent money markets and bank deposit assets.
Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K | 5 |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Incentive Fees. In certain circumstances, we are also entitled to receive incentive fees based on a percentage of a funds or a separately managed accounts return, or when the return exceeds a specified benchmark or other performance targets. Such fees include overrides, which consist of the increased share of the income and gains derived primarily from our private equity funds when the return on a funds investments over the life of the fund exceeds certain threshold returns. Incentive fees are recognized only when all material contingencies are resolved.
Transaction Revenues. We receive commissions and net spreads for facilitating transactional activity in high-net-worth client accounts. In addition, we earn net interest income primarily associated with client deposits and margin lending activity undertaken by such clients.
Business Continuity and Information Security
Business continuity and information security, including cyber security, are high priorities for Goldman Sachs. Their importance has been highlighted by Hurricane Sandy and several recent highly publicized cyber attacks against financial institutions and large consumer-based companies that resulted in the unauthorized disclosure of personal information of clients and/or customers, as well as other cyber attacks involving the theft and destruction of corporate information.
Our Business Continuity Program has been developed to provide reasonable assurance of business continuity in the event of disruptions at the firms critical facilities and to comply with regulatory requirements, including those of FINRA. Because we are a bank holding company, our Business Continuity Program is also subject to review by the Federal Reserve Board. The key elements of the program are crisis planning and management, people recovery, business recovery, systems and data recovery, and process improvement. In the area of information security, we have developed and implemented a framework of principles, policies and technology to protect the information provided to us by our clients and that of the firm from cyber attacks and other misappropriation, corruption or loss. Safeguards are applied to maintain the confidentiality, integrity and availability of information.
Management believes that a major strength and principal reason for the success of Goldman Sachs is the quality and dedication of our people and the shared sense of being part of a team. We strive to maintain a work environment that fosters professionalism, excellence, diversity, cooperation among our employees worldwide and high standards of business ethics.
Instilling the Goldman Sachs culture in all employees is a continuous process, in which training plays an important part. All employees are offered the opportunity to participate in education and periodic seminars that we sponsor at various locations throughout the world. Another important part of instilling the Goldman Sachs culture is our employee review process. Employees are reviewed by supervisors, co-workers and employees they supervise in a 360-degree review process that is integral to our team approach, and includes an evaluation of an employees performance with respect to risk management, compliance and diversity. As of December 2014, we had 34,000 total staff.
The financial services industry and all of our businesses are intensely competitive, and we expect them to remain so. Our competitors are other entities that provide investment banking, securities and investment management services, as well as those entities that make investments in securities, commodities, derivatives, real estate, loans and other financial assets. These entities include brokers and dealers, investment banking firms, commercial banks, insurance companies, investment advisers, mutual funds, hedge funds, private equity funds and merchant banks. We compete with some entities globally and with others on a regional, product or niche basis. Our competition is based on a number of factors, including transaction execution, products and services, innovation, reputation and price.
6 | Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Over time, there has been substantial consolidation and convergence among companies in the financial services industry and, in particular, the credit crisis caused numerous mergers and asset acquisitions among industry participants. Efforts by our competitors to gain market share have resulted in pricing pressure in our investment banking and client execution businesses and could result in pricing pressure in other of our businesses. Moreover, we have faced, and expect to continue to face, pressure to retain market share by committing capital to businesses or transactions on terms that offer returns that may not be commensurate with their risks. In particular, corporate clients seek such commitments (such as agreements to participate in their commercial paper backstop or other loan facilities) from financial services firms in connection with investment banking and other assignments.
Consolidation and convergence have significantly increased the capital base and geographic reach of some of our competitors, and have also hastened the globalization of the securities and other financial services markets. As a result, we have had to commit capital to support our international operations and to execute large global transactions. To take advantage of some of our most significant opportunities, we will have to compete successfully with financial institutions that are larger and have more capital and that may have a stronger local presence and longer operating history outside the United States. We also compete with smaller institutions that offer more targeted services, such as independent advisory firms. Some clients may perceive these firms to be less susceptible to potential conflicts of interest than we are, and, as discussed below, our ability to effectively compete with them could be affected by regulations and limitations on activities that apply to us but may not apply to them.
We have experienced intense price competition in some of our businesses in recent years. For example, over the past several years the increasing volume of trades executed electronically, through the internet and through alternative trading systems, has increased the pressure on trading commissions, in that commissions for low-touch electronic trading are generally lower than for high-touch non-electronic trading. It appears that this trend toward electronic and other low-touch, low-commission trading will continue. In addition, we believe that we will continue to experience competitive pressures in these and other areas in the future as some of our competitors seek to obtain market share by further reducing prices.
The provisions of the U.S. Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank Act), the requirements promulgated by the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (Basel Committee) and other financial regulation could affect our competitive position to the extent that limitations on activities, increased fees and compliance costs or other regulatory requirements do not apply, or do not apply equally, to all of our competitors or are not implemented uniformly across different jurisdictions. For example, the provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act that prohibit proprietary trading and restrict investments in certain hedge and private equity funds differentiate between U.S.-based and non-U.S.-based banking organizations and give non-U.S.-based banking organizations greater flexibility to trade outside of the United States and to form and invest in funds outside the United States. Likewise, the obligations with respect to derivative transactions under Title VII of the Dodd-Frank Act depend, in part, on the location of the counterparties to the transaction. The impact of the Dodd-Frank Act and other regulatory developments on our competitive position will depend to a large extent on the manner in which the required rulemaking and regulatory guidance evolve, the extent of international convergence, and the development of market practice and structures under the new regulatory regimes as discussed further under Regulation below.
We also face intense competition in attracting and retaining qualified employees. Our ability to continue to compete effectively will depend upon our ability to attract new employees, retain and motivate our existing employees and to continue to compensate employees competitively amid intense public and regulatory scrutiny on the compensation practices of large financial institutions. Our pay practices and those of certain of our competitors are subject to review by, and the standards of, the Federal Reserve Board and regulators outside the United States, including the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in the United Kingdom. We also compete for employees with institutions whose pay practices are not subject to regulatory oversight. See Regulation Bank Holding Company Regulation and Regulation Compensation Practices below and Risk Factors Our businesses may be adversely affected if we are unable to hire and retain qualified employees in Part I, Item 1A of the 2014 Form 10-K for more information about the regulation of our compensation practices.
Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K | 7 |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
As a participant in the banking, securities, investment management, and derivatives industries, we are subject to extensive regulation worldwide. Regulatory bodies around the world are generally charged with safeguarding the integrity of the securities and other financial markets and with protecting the interests of the customers of market participants, including depositors in banking entities and the customers of banks, broker-dealers, investment advisers, swap dealers and security-based swap dealers.
The financial services industry has been the subject of intense regulatory scrutiny in recent years. Our businesses have been subject to increasing regulation and supervision in the United States and other countries, and we expect this trend to continue in the future. In particular, the Dodd-Frank Act, which was enacted in July 2010, significantly altered the financial regulatory regime within which we operate. Not all the rules required or expected to be implemented under the Dodd-Frank Act have been proposed or adopted, and certain of the rules that have been proposed or adopted under the Dodd-Frank Act are subject to phase-in or transitional periods. The implications of the Dodd-Frank Act for our businesses continue to depend to a large extent on the implementation of the legislation by the Federal Reserve Board, the FDIC, the SEC, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and other agencies, as well as the development of market practices and structures under the regime established by the legislation and the implementing rules. Other reforms have been adopted or are being considered by other regulators and policy makers worldwide, as discussed further throughout this section. We will continue to update our business, risk management, and compliance practices to conform to developments in the regulatory environment.
Bank Holding Company Regulation
Group Inc. is a bank holding company under the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956 (BHC Act) and a financial holding company under amendments to the BHC Act effected by the U.S. Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act of 1999 (GLB Act).
Supervision and Regulation
As a bank holding company and a financial holding company under the BHC Act, Group Inc. is subject to supervision and examination by the Federal Reserve Board. Under the system of functional regulation established under the BHC Act, the Federal Reserve Board serves as the primary regulator of our consolidated organization, but generally defers to the primary regulators of our U.S. non-bank subsidiaries with respect to the activities of those subsidiaries. Such functionally regulated U.S. non-bank subsidiaries include broker-dealers registered with the SEC, such as our principal U.S. broker-dealer, Goldman, Sachs & Co. (GS&Co.), entities registered with or regulated by the CFTC with respect to futures-related and swaps-related activities and investment advisers registered with the SEC with respect to their investment advisory activities.
As discussed further below, our principal U.S. bank subsidiary, GS Bank USA, is supervised and regulated by the Federal Reserve Board, the FDIC, the New York State Department of Financial Services and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). In addition, Group Inc. has two limited purpose trust company subsidiaries that are not permitted to accept deposits or make loans (other than as incidental to their trust activities) and are not insured by the FDIC. The Goldman Sachs Trust Company, N.A., a national banking association that is limited to fiduciary activities, is regulated by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and is a member bank of the Federal Reserve System. The Goldman Sachs Trust Company of Delaware, a Delaware limited purpose trust company, is regulated by the Office of the Delaware State Bank Commissioner.
8 | Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Activities
The BHC Act generally restricts bank holding companies from engaging in business activities other than the business of banking and certain closely related activities. Financial holding companies, however, generally can engage in a broader range of financial and related activities than are otherwise permissible for bank holding companies as long as they continue to meet the eligibility requirements for financial holding companies. These requirements include that the financial holding company and each of its U.S. depository institution subsidiaries maintain their status as well-capitalized and well-managed. The broader range of permissible activities for financial holding companies includes underwriting, dealing and making markets in securities and making investments in non-financial companies. In addition, financial holding companies are permitted under the GLB Act to engage in certain commodities activities in the United States that may otherwise be impermissible for bank holding companies, so long as the assets held pursuant to these activities do not equal 5% or more of their consolidated assets.
The Federal Reserve Board, however, has the authority to limit our ability to conduct activities that would otherwise be permissible for a financial holding company, and will do so if we do not satisfactorily meet certain requirements of the Federal Reserve Board. In addition, we are required to obtain prior Federal Reserve Board approval before engaging in certain banking and other financial activities both in the United States and abroad.
Volcker Rule
In December 2013, the final rules to implement the provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act referred to as the Volcker Rule were adopted.
The Volcker Rule prohibits proprietary trading, but permits activities such as underwriting, market making and risk-mitigation hedging. We are also required to calculate daily quantitative metrics on covered trading activities (as defined in the rule) and provide these metrics to regulators on a monthly basis. In addition, the Volcker Rule limits the sponsorship of, and investment in, covered funds (as defined in the rule) by banking entities, including Group Inc. and its subsidiaries. It also limits certain types of transactions between us and our sponsored funds, similar to the limitations on transactions between depository institutions and their affiliates as described below under Regulation of GS Bank USA Transactions with Affiliates. Covered funds include our private equity funds, certain of our credit and real estate funds, our hedge funds and certain other investment structures.
We are required to be in compliance with the prohibition on proprietary trading and to develop an extensive compliance program by July 2015. In December 2014, the Federal Reserve Board extended the compliance period through July 2016 for investments in, and relationships with, covered funds that were in place prior to December 31, 2013, and indicated that it intends to further extend the compliance period through July 2017.
The limitation on investments in covered funds requires us to reduce our investment in each such fund to 3% or less of the funds net asset value, and to reduce our aggregate investment in all such funds to 3% or less of our Tier 1 capital. In anticipation of the final rule, we limited our initial investment in certain new covered funds to 3% of the funds net asset value.
We continue to manage our existing funds, taking into account the transition periods under the Volcker Rule. We plan to continue to conduct our investing and lending activities in ways that are permissible under the Volcker Rule.
See Managements Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations Regulatory Developments Volcker Rule in Part II, Item 7 of the 2014 Form 10-K for information about our investments in covered funds.
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Leveraged Lending
During the past several years, the U.S. federal bank regulatory agencies have raised concerns over origination and other practices in leveraged lending markets. The agencies have issued guidance that focuses on transaction structures and risk management frameworks and outlined high-level principles for safe-and-sound leveraged lending, including underwriting standards, valuation and stress testing. Although the full impact of the guidance remains uncertain, implementation of this guidance and any related changes in the leveraged lending market could adversely affect our leveraged lending business.
Capital and Liquidity Requirements
As a bank holding company, we are subject to consolidated regulatory capital requirements administered by the Federal Reserve Board, and GS Bank USA is subject to substantially similar capital requirements (as discussed below), also administered by the Federal Reserve Board.
Under the Federal Reserve Boards capital adequacy requirements, Group Inc. must meet specific regulatory capital requirements that involve quantitative measures of assets, liabilities and certain off-balance-sheet items. The sufficiency of our capital levels is also subject to qualitative judgments by regulators.
Other regulated subsidiaries, including GS&Co. and Goldman Sachs International (GSI), are also subject to capital requirements. We expect Group Inc., GS Bank USA, GS&Co., GSI and other regulated subsidiaries to become subject to increased capital requirements over time.
Capital Ratios. Since January 1, 2014, we have been subject to the Federal Reserve Boards revised risk-based capital and leverage ratio regulations, inclusive of certain transitional provisions (Revised Capital Framework). These regulations are largely based on the Basel Committees final capital framework for strengthening international capital standards (Basel III), and also implement certain provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act. The Revised Capital Framework also introduces a new Tier 1 supplementary leverage ratio (supplementary leverage ratio) for Advanced approach banking organizations.
See Managements Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations Equity Capital Management and Regulatory Capital in Part II, Item 7 of the 2014 Form 10-K and Note 20 to the consolidated financial statements in Part II, Item 8 of the 2014 Form 10-K for the aspects of the Revised Capital Framework that are most relevant to us as an Advanced approach banking organization, including information about our Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1), CET1 ratio, Tier 1 capital, Tier 1 capital ratio, Total capital, Total capital ratio, risk-weighted assets (RWAs), Tier 1 leverage ratio and supplementary leverage ratio, and for a discussion of minimum required ratios.
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Liquidity Ratios under Basel III. Historically, regulation and monitoring of bank and bank holding company liquidity has been addressed as a supervisory matter, both in the United States and internationally, without required formulaic measures. Basel III, which is subject to implementation by national regulators, requires banks and bank holding companies to measure their liquidity against two specific liquidity tests that, although similar in some respects to liquidity measures historically applied by banks and regulators for management and supervisory purposes, will be mandated by regulation. One test, referred to as the liquidity coverage ratio (LCR), is designed to ensure that the entity maintains an adequate level of unencumbered high-quality liquid assets under an acute short-term liquidity stress scenario. The other, referred to as the net stable funding ratio (NSFR), is designed to promote more medium- and long-term stable funding of the assets and off-balance-sheet activities of these entities over a one-year time horizon. These requirements may incentivize banking entities to increase their holdings of securities that qualify as high-quality liquid assets and increase the use of long-term debt as a funding source.
During 2014, the U.S. federal bank regulatory agencies approved final rules implementing the LCR for Advanced approach banking organizations that are generally consistent with the Basel Committees framework as described above, but which include accelerated transitional provisions and more stringent requirements related to both the range of assets that qualify as high-quality liquid assets and cash outflow assumptions for certain types of funding. Under the accelerated transition timeline, the LCR became effective in the United States on January 1, 2015, with a phase-in period whereby firms must meet an 80% minimum ratio in 2015, which will increase 10% per year until 2017. See Managements Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations Liquidity Risk Management in Part II, Item 7 of the 2014 Form 10-K for information about the LCR.
During 2014, the Basel Committee issued its final framework for calculation of the NSFR. Under the Basel Committee framework, the NSFR will be effective on January 1, 2018. The U.S. federal bank regulatory agencies have not yet proposed rules implementing the NSFR for U.S. banking organizations. We are currently evaluating the impact of the Basel Committees NSFR framework.
The implementation of these standards, and any amendments or modifications adopted by the U.S. federal bank regulatory agencies, could impact our liquidity and funding requirements and practices in the future.
Stress Tests. The Federal Reserve Board has issued final rules implementing the requirements of the Dodd-Frank Act concerning the Dodd-Frank Act supervisory stress tests to be conducted by the Federal Reserve Board and semi-annual company-run stress tests for bank holding companies with total consolidated assets of $50 billion or more. The stress test rules require increased involvement by boards of directors in stress testing and public disclosure of the results of both the Federal Reserve Boards annual stress tests and a bank holding companys annual supervisory stress tests, and semi-annual internal stress tests. Certain stress test requirements are also applicable to GS Bank USA, as discussed below.
Our internally developed severely adverse scenario is designed to stress the firms risks and idiosyncratic vulnerabilities and assess the firms pro-forma capital position and ratios under the hypothetical stressed environment. We publish summaries of our annual and mid-cycle stress tests results on our web site as described under Available Information below. Our annual Dodd-Frank Act stress test submission is incorporated into the annual capital plans that we are required to submit to the Federal Reserve Board as part of the Comprehensive Capital Analysis and Review (CCAR). The purpose of CCAR is to ensure that large bank holding companies have robust, forward-looking capital planning processes that account for each institutions unique risks and that permit continued operations during times of economic and financial stress. As part of CCAR, the Federal Reserve Board evaluates an institutions plan to make capital distributions, such as repurchasing or redeeming stock or increasing dividend payments, across a range of macro-economic and firm-specific assumptions.
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THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Payment of Dividends and Stock Repurchases. Dividend payments by Group Inc. to its shareholders and stock repurchases by Group Inc. are subject to the oversight of the Federal Reserve Board. The dividend and share repurchase policies of large bank holding companies, such as Group Inc., are reviewed by the Federal Reserve Board, through the CCAR process, based on capital plans and stress tests submitted by the bank holding company, and are assessed against, among other things, the bank holding companys ability to meet and exceed minimum regulatory capital ratios under stressed scenarios, its expected sources and uses of capital over the planning horizon under baseline and stressed scenarios, and any potential impact of changes to its business plan and activities on its capital adequacy and liquidity.
In October 2014, the Federal Reserve Board issued a final rule modifying the regulations for capital planning and stress testing. The modifications change the dates for submitting the capital plan and stress test results beginning with the 2016 cycle and include a limitation on capital distributions to the extent that actual capital issuances are less than the amount indicated in the capital plan submission.
The Federal Reserve Board informed us that it did not object to our proposed capital actions through the first quarter of 2015, including the repurchase of outstanding common stock, an increase in our quarterly common stock dividend, and the possible issuance, redemption and modification of other capital securities. We submitted our 2015 capital plan and proposed capital actions to the Federal Reserve Board in January 2015 and expect to publish a summary of our annual Dodd-Frank Act stress test results in March 2015.
Enhanced Prudential Standards. In February 2014, the Federal Reserve Board adopted rules to implement certain of the enhanced prudential standards contemplated by the Dodd-Frank Act. Effective on January 1, 2015, the rules require bank holding companies with $50 billion or more in total consolidated assets to comply with enhanced liquidity and overall risk management standards, including a buffer of highly liquid assets based on projected funding needs for 30 days, and increased involvement by boards of directors in liquidity and overall risk management. Although the liquidity buffer under these rules has some similarities to the LCR (and is described by the agencies as complementary to the LCR), it is a separate requirement that is in addition to the LCR. See Managements Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations Risk Management and Risk Factors Overview and Structure of Risk Management and Liquidity Risk Management in Part II, Item 7 of the 2014 Form 10-K for information about our risk management practices and liquidity.
Regulatory Proposals
In addition to the regulatory rule changes that have already been adopted (as discussed above), both the Federal Reserve Board and the Basel Committee have proposed other changes, which are discussed below. The full impact of these proposals on the firm will not be known with certainty until after any resulting rules are finalized and market practices develop under the final rules. Furthermore, these proposals, the Dodd-Frank Act, other reform initiatives proposed and announced by the U.S. federal bank regulatory agencies, the Basel Committee, and other governmental entities and regulators (including the European Union (EU), the PRA and the FCA) are not in all cases consistent with one another, which adds further uncertainty to our future capital, leverage and liquidity requirements, and those of our subsidiaries.
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THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Federal Reserve Board Proposals. In December 2014, the Federal Reserve Board proposed a rule to establish risk-based capital surcharges for U.S. Global Systemically Important Banks (G-SIBs). For these institutions, the proposed rule would implement the framework developed by the Basel Committee for assessing the global systemic importance of banking institutions and determining the range of additional CET1 that should be maintained by those deemed to be G-SIBs. Under the Basel Committees framework, the required amount of additional CET1 for G-SIBs will initially range from 1% to 2.5% and could be higher in the future for a banking institution that increases its systemic footprint (e.g., by increasing total assets). The Federal Reserve Board stated that its framework would result in surcharges higher than those calculated under the methodology published by the Basel Committee, with expected surcharges ranging from 1% to 4.5%. The proposed rule treats the Basel Committees methodology as a floor and introduces an alternative calculation to determine the applicable surcharge, which includes a significantly higher surcharge for systemic risk and, as part of the calculation of the applicable surcharge, a new factor based on a G-SIBs use of short-term wholesale funding. Under the Federal Reserve Boards proposed rule, U.S. G-SIBs would be required to meet the capital surcharges on a phased-in basis beginning in 2016 through 2019. See Managements Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations Equity Capital Management and Regulatory Capital in Part II, Item 7 of the 2014 Form 10-K for additional information about our minimum capital ratios and capital buffers.
In December 2011, the Federal Reserve Board proposed rules to implement the enhanced prudential standards and early remediation requirements contemplated by the Dodd-Frank Act. Although most components of these proposals have now been addressed in final rules that are described above, the single-counterparty credit limits and early remediation requirements are still under consideration. The proposed single-counterparty credit limits impose more stringent requirements for credit exposure among major financial institutions, which (together with other provisions incorporated into the Basel III capital rules) may affect our ability to transact or hedge with other financial institutions. The proposed early remediation rules are modeled on the prompt corrective action regime, described below, but are designed to require action to begin in earlier stages of a companys financial distress, based on a range of triggers, including capital and leverage, stress test results, liquidity and risk management.
Basel Committee and Financial Stability Board Proposals. The Basel Committee published its final guidelines for calculating incremental capital requirements for domestic systemically important banking institutions (D-SIBs). These guidelines are complementary to the framework outlined above for G-SIBs, but are more principles-based in order to provide an appropriate degree of national discretion. The impact of these guidelines on the regulatory capital requirements of GS Bank USA, GSI and other of our subsidiaries will depend on how they are implemented by the banking and non-banking regulators in the United States and other jurisdictions.
The Basel Committee has recently issued several updates which propose further changes to capital regulations. In particular, it has finalized a revised standard approach for calculating RWAs for counterparty credit risk on derivatives exposures (Standardized Approach for measuring Counterparty Credit Risk exposures, known as SA-CCR). In addition, it has published guidelines for measuring and controlling large exposures (Supervisory Framework for measuring and controlling Large Exposures), and issued an updated framework for regulatory capital treatment of banking book securitizations.
The Basel Committee has also issued consultation papers on a Fundamental Review of the Trading Book and on the design of a capital floor framework based on the standardized approach. The impact of all of these developments on the firm (including RWAs and regulatory capital ratios) will not be known until after any resulting rules are finalized by the U.S. federal bank regulatory agencies.
In November 2014, the Financial Stability Board issued a set of principles and a term sheet on a new minimum standard for total loss-absorbing capacity of G-SIBs and indicated that it expects to finalize its proposal by late 2015. The proposal would require G-SIBs to maintain minimum ratios of regulatory capital plus certain types of debt instruments to RWAs and leverage exposure. Under the proposal, the requirements will be effective no earlier than January 1, 2019. The proposal is subject to change, and its impact on us will depend on, among other things, how it is implemented by the U.S. federal bank regulatory agencies.
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THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Resolution and Recovery Plans
As required by the Dodd-Frank Act, the Federal Reserve Board and FDIC have jointly issued a rule requiring each bank holding company with over $50 billion in assets and each designated systemically important financial institution to provide to regulators an annual plan for its rapid and orderly resolution in the event of material financial distress or failure (resolution plan). Our resolution plan must, among other things, demonstrate that GS Bank USA is adequately protected from risks arising from our other entities. The regulators joint rule sets specific standards for the resolution plans, including requiring a detailed resolution strategy and analyses of the companys material entities, organizational structure, interconnections and interdependencies, and management information systems, among other elements. Group Inc. submitted resolution plans to its regulators in 2012, 2013 and 2014. In August 2014, the Federal Reserve Board and the FDIC indicated that Group Inc. and other large industry participants had certain shortcomings in the 2013 resolution plans that must be addressed in the 2015 resolution plans, which are required to be submitted on or before July 1, 2015. If we fail to cure the deficiencies in a timely manner and the Federal Reserve Board and the FDIC jointly determine that our resolution plan, after any permitted resubmission, is not credible, the Federal Reserve Board and the FDIC may jointly impose more stringent capital, leverage or liquidity requirements on us or restrictions on our growth, activities or operations until we submit a plan that remedies the deficiencies. If the Federal Reserve Board and the FDIC ultimately determine that we have been unable to remedy the deficiencies, they may jointly order us to divest assets or operations in order to facilitate our orderly resolution in the event of our failure.
Group Inc. is also required by the Federal Reserve Board to submit, on an annual basis, a global recovery plan that outlines the steps that management could take to reduce risk, maintain sufficient liquidity, and conserve capital in times of prolonged stress. We have been submitting plans annually since 2010.
The European Banking Authority and the national resolution authorities of the EU are in the process of implementing the Bank Recovery and Resolution Directive (BRRD), which will impact the firms EU-regulated entities. Certain of the provisions of BRRD, including the requirements for contractual recognition of the bail-in powers of EU resolution authorities to recapitalize a failing entity by writing down its unsecured debt or converting its unsecured debt into equity, came into force on January 1, 2015, and the remainder of the BRRDs provisions are expected to be implemented by January 2016.
Source of Strength
Federal Reserve Board policy historically has required bank holding companies to act as a source of strength to their bank subsidiaries and to commit capital and financial resources to support those subsidiaries. The Dodd-Frank Act codifies this policy as a statutory requirement. This support may be required by the Federal Reserve Board at times when we might otherwise determine not to provide it. Capital loans by a bank holding company to a subsidiary bank are subordinate in right of payment to deposits and to certain other indebtedness of the subsidiary bank. In addition, if a bank holding company commits to a federal bank regulator that it will maintain the capital of its bank subsidiary, whether in response to the Federal Reserve Boards invoking its source-of-strength authority or in response to other regulatory measures, that commitment will be assumed by the bankruptcy trustee and the bank will be entitled to priority payment in respect of that commitment, ahead of other creditors of the bank holding company.
The BHC Act provides for regulation of bank holding company activities by various functional regulators and prohibits the Federal Reserve Board from requiring a payment by a holding company subsidiary to a depository institution if the functional regulator of that subsidiary objects to such payment. In such a case, the Federal Reserve Board could instead require the divestiture of the depository institution and impose operating restrictions pending the divestiture.
Compensation Practices
Our compensation practices are subject to oversight by the Federal Reserve Board and, with respect to some of our subsidiaries and employees, by other financial regulatory bodies worldwide. The scope and content of compensation regulation in the financial industry are continuing to develop, and we expect that these regulations and resulting market practices will evolve over a number of years.
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THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
The U.S. federal bank regulatory agencies have provided guidance designed to ensure that incentive compensation arrangements at banking organizations take into account risk and are consistent with safe and sound practices. The guidance sets forth the following three key principles with respect to incentive compensation arrangements: (i) the arrangements should provide employees with incentives that appropriately balance risk and financial results in a manner that does not encourage employees to expose their organizations to imprudent risk; (ii) the arrangements should be compatible with effective controls and risk management; and (iii) the arrangements should be supported by strong corporate governance. The guidance provides that supervisory findings with respect to incentive compensation will be incorporated, as appropriate, into the organizations supervisory ratings, which can affect its ability to make acquisitions or perform other actions. The guidance also provides that enforcement actions may be taken against a banking organization if its incentive compensation arrangements or related risk management, control or governance processes pose a risk to the organizations safety and soundness.
The Financial Stability Board has released standards for implementing certain compensation principles for banks and other financial companies designed to encourage sound compensation practices. These standards are to be implemented by local regulators. In the EU, the Fourth Capital Requirements Directive (CRD4) includes compensation provisions designed to implement the Financial Stability Boards compensation standards. These rules have been implemented by EU member states and, among other things, limit the ratio of variable to fixed compensation of certain employees, including those identified as having a material impact on the risk profile of EU-regulated entities, including GSI. These requirements are in addition to the guidance issued by U.S. financial regulators discussed above and the Dodd-Frank Act provision discussed below.
The Dodd-Frank Act requires the U.S. financial regulators, including the Federal Reserve Board, to establish joint regulations or guidelines prohibiting incentive-based payment arrangements at specified regulated entities having at least $1 billion in total assets (which would include Group Inc. and some of its depository institution, broker-dealer and investment advisor subsidiaries) that encourage inappropriate risks by providing an executive officer, employee, director or principal shareholder with excessive compensation, fees, or benefits or that could lead to material financial loss to the entity. In addition, these regulators must establish regulations or guidelines requiring enhanced disclosure to regulators of incentive-based compensation arrangements. The initial version of these regulations was proposed by the U.S. financial regulators in early 2011 but the regulations have not yet been finalized. The proposed regulations incorporate the three key principles from the regulatory guidance discussed above. If the regulations are adopted in the form proposed, they may restrict our flexibility with respect to the manner in which we structure compensation.
Regulation of GS Bank USA
Our subsidiary, GS Bank USA, an FDIC-insured, New York State-chartered bank and a member of the Federal Reserve System, is supervised and regulated by the Federal Reserve Board, the FDIC, the New York State Department of Financial Services and the CFPB, and is subject to minimum capital requirements (described below) that are calculated in a manner similar to those applicable to bank holding companies. A number of our activities are conducted partially or entirely through GS Bank USA and its subsidiaries, including: origination of bank loans; interest rate, credit, currency and other derivatives; leveraged finance; mortgage origination; structured finance; and agency lending.
Under rules adopted by the Federal Reserve Board in 2012 under the Dodd-Frank Act, GS Bank USA is required to conduct stress tests on an annual basis, to submit the results to the Federal Reserve Board, and to make a summary of those results public. The rules require that the board of directors of GS Bank USA, among other things, consider the results of the stress tests in the normal course of the banks business including, but not limited to, its capital planning, assessment of capital adequacy and risk management practices.
In addition, New York State banking law imposes lending limits (which take into account credit exposure from derivative transactions) and other requirements that could impact the manner and scope of GS Bank USAs activities.
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THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Transactions with Affiliates. Transactions between GS Bank USA or its subsidiaries, on the one hand, and Group Inc. or its other subsidiaries and affiliates, on the other hand, are regulated by the Federal Reserve Board. These regulations generally limit the types and amounts of transactions (including credit extensions from GS Bank USA or its subsidiaries to Group Inc. or its other subsidiaries and affiliates) that may take place and generally require those transactions to be on market terms or better to GS Bank USA. These regulations generally do not apply to transactions between GS Bank USA and its subsidiaries. The Dodd-Frank Act expanded the coverage and scope of these regulations, including by applying them to the credit exposure arising under derivative transactions, repurchase and reverse repurchase agreements, and securities borrowing and lending transactions.
Federal and state laws impose limitations on the payment of dividends by our depository institution subsidiaries to Group Inc. In general, the amount of dividends that may be paid by GS Bank USA or our national bank trust company subsidiary is limited to the lesser of the amounts calculated under a recent earnings test and an undivided profits test. Under the recent earnings test, a dividend may not be paid if the total of all dividends declared by the entity in any calendar year is in excess of the current years net income combined with the retained net income of the two preceding years, unless the entity obtains prior regulatory approval. Under the undivided profits test, a dividend may not be paid in excess of the entitys undivided profits (generally, accumulated net profits that have not been paid out as dividends or transferred to surplus). The banking regulators have authority to prohibit or limit the payment of dividends if, in the banking regulators opinion, payment of a dividend would constitute an unsafe or unsound practice in light of the financial condition of the banking organization.
Deposit Insurance. GS Bank USA accepts deposits, and those deposits have the benefit of FDIC insurance up to the applicable limits. The FDICs Deposit Insurance Fund is funded by assessments on insured depository institutions, such as GS Bank USA. The amounts of these assessments for larger depository institutions (generally those that have $10 billion in assets or more), such as GS Bank USA, are currently based on the average total consolidated assets less the average tangible equity of the insured depository institution during the assessment period, the supervisory ratings of the insured depository institution and specified forward-looking financial measures used to calculate the assessment rate. The assessment rate is subject to adjustment by the FDIC.
Prompt Corrective Action and Capital Ratios. The U.S. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Improvement Act of 1991 (FDICIA), among other things, requires the federal banking agencies to take prompt corrective action in respect of depository institutions that do not meet specified capital requirements. FDICIA establishes five capital categories for FDIC-insured banks: well-capitalized, adequately capitalized, undercapitalized, significantly undercapitalized and critically undercapitalized.
GS Bank USA computes its CET1, Tier 1 capital, Total capital and Tier 1 leverage ratios in accordance with the Revised Capital Framework. In addition, commencing January 1, 2018, GS Bank USA will be subject to minimum supplementary leverage ratio requirements.
See Note 20 to the consolidated financial statements in Part II, Item 8 of the 2014 Form 10-K and Managements Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations Equity Capital Management and Regulatory Capital in Part II, Item 7 of the 2014 Form 10-K for information about GS Bank USAs regulatory capital ratios and supplementary leverage ratio.
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THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
An institution may be downgraded to, or deemed to be in, a capital category that is lower than is indicated by its capital ratios if it is determined to be in an unsafe or unsound condition or if it receives an unsatisfactory examination rating with respect to certain matters. FDICIA imposes progressively more restrictive constraints on operations, management and capital distributions, as the capital category of an institution declines. Failure to meet the capital requirements could also require a depository institution to raise capital. Ultimately, critically undercapitalized institutions are subject to the appointment of a receiver or conservator, as described under Insolvency of an Insured Depository Institution or a Bank Holding Company below.
The prompt corrective action regulations apply only to depository institutions and not to bank holding companies such as Group Inc. However, the Federal Reserve Board is authorized to take appropriate action at the holding company level, based upon the undercapitalized status of the holding companys depository institution subsidiaries. In certain instances relating to an undercapitalized depository institution subsidiary, the bank holding company would be required to guarantee the performance of the undercapitalized subsidiarys capital restoration plan and might be liable for civil money damages for failure to fulfill its commitments on that guarantee. Furthermore, in the event of the bankruptcy of the holding company, the guarantee would take priority over the holding companys general unsecured creditors, as described under Source of Strength above.
Resolution Plan. The FDIC issued a rule requiring each insured depository institution with $50 billion or more in assets, such as GS Bank USA, to provide a resolution plan. Similar to our resolution plan for Group Inc., our resolution plan for GS Bank USA must, among other things, demonstrate that it is adequately protected from risks arising from our other entities. GS Bank USA submitted its 2013 resolution plan to its regulators in September 2013 and its 2014 resolution plan in June 2014. In December 2014, the FDIC issued guidance relating to insured depository institutions resolution plans. GS Bank USAs 2015 resolution plan is required to be submitted on or before July 1, 2015.
Insolvency of an Insured Depository Institution or a Bank Holding Company
Under the Federal Deposit Insurance Act of 1950, if the FDIC is appointed as conservator or receiver for an insured depository institution such as GS Bank USA, upon its insolvency or in certain other events, the FDIC has broad powers, including the power:
| To transfer any of the depository institutions assets and liabilities to a new obligor, including a newly formed bridge bank, without the approval of the depository institutions creditors; |
| To enforce the depository institutions contracts pursuant to their terms without regard to any provisions triggered by the appointment of the FDIC in that capacity; or |
| To repudiate or disaffirm any contract or lease to which the depository institution is a party, the performance of which is determined by the FDIC to be burdensome and the disaffirmance or repudiation of which is determined by the FDIC to promote the orderly administration of the depository institution. |
In addition, under federal law, the claims of holders of domestic deposit liabilities and certain claims for administrative expenses against an insured depository institution would be afforded a priority over other general unsecured claims, including deposits at non-U.S. branches and claims of debt holders of the institution, in the liquidation or other resolution of such an institution by any receiver. As a result, whether or not the FDIC ever sought to repudiate any debt obligations of GS Bank USA, the debt holders (other than depositors) would be treated differently from, and could receive, if anything, substantially less than, the depositors of GS Bank USA.
The Dodd-Frank Act created a new resolution regime (known as orderly liquidation authority) for bank holding companies and their affiliates that are systemically important and certain non-bank financial companies. Under the orderly liquidation authority, the FDIC may be appointed as receiver for the systemically important institution and its failed non-bank subsidiaries if, among other conditions, it is determined at the time of the institutions failure that it is in default or in danger of default and the failure poses a risk to the stability of the U.S. financial system.
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THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
If the FDIC is appointed as receiver under the orderly liquidation authority, then the powers of the receiver, and the rights and obligations of creditors and other parties who have dealt with the institution, would be determined under the orderly liquidation authority, and not under the bankruptcy or insolvency law that would otherwise apply. The powers of the receiver under the orderly liquidation authority were generally based on the powers of the FDIC as receiver for depository institutions under the Federal Deposit Insurance Act. Substantial differences in the rights of creditors exist between the orderly liquidation authority and the U.S. Bankruptcy Code, including the right of the FDIC under the orderly liquidation authority to disregard the strict priority of creditor claims in some circumstances, the use of an administrative claims procedure to determine creditors claims (as opposed to the judicial procedure utilized in bankruptcy proceedings), and the right of the FDIC to transfer claims to a bridge entity. In addition, the orderly liquidation authority limits the ability of creditors to enforce certain contractual cross-defaults against affiliates of the institution in receivership.
The orderly liquidation authority provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act became effective upon enactment. The FDIC has completed several rulemakings and taken other actions under the orderly liquidation authority, including the issuance of a notice in December 2013 describing some elements of its single point of entry or SPOE strategy pursuant to the orderly liquidation authority provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act. Under this strategy, the FDIC would, among other things, resolve a failed financial holding company by transferring its assets to a bridge holding company.
In November 2014, we, along with a number of other major global banking organizations, adhered to a new International Swaps and Derivatives Association Resolution Stay Protocol (the ISDA Protocol) that was developed in coordination with the Financial Stability Board and that took effect in January 2015. The ISDA Protocol imposes a stay on certain cross-default and early termination rights within standard ISDA derivatives contracts between adhering parties in the event that one of them is subject to resolution in its home jurisdiction, including a resolution under the orderly liquidation authority in the United States. The ISDA Protocol is expected to be adopted more broadly in the future, following the adoption of regulations by banking regulators, and expanded to include instances where a U.S. financial holding company becomes subject to proceedings under the U.S. bankruptcy code.
Broker-Dealer and Securities Regulation
Goldman Sachs broker-dealer subsidiaries are subject to regulations that cover all aspects of the securities business, including sales methods, trade practices, use and safekeeping of clients funds and securities, capital structure, recordkeeping, the financing of clients purchases, and the conduct of directors, officers and employees. In the United States, the SEC is the federal agency responsible for the administration of the federal securities laws. GS&Co. is registered as a broker-dealer, a municipal advisor and an investment adviser with the SEC and as a broker-dealer in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Self-regulatory organizations, such as FINRA and the NYSE, adopt rules that apply to, and examine, broker-dealers such as GS&Co.
In addition, state securities and other regulators also have regulatory or oversight authority over GS&Co. Similarly, our businesses are also subject to regulation by various non-U.S. governmental and regulatory bodies and self-regulatory authorities in virtually all countries where we have offices, as discussed further under Other Regulation below. GSEC and one of its subsidiaries are registered U.S. broker-dealers and are regulated by the SEC, the NYSE and FINRA. For a discussion of net capital requirements applicable to GS&Co. and GSEC, see Note 20 to the consolidated financial statements in Part II, Item 8 of the 2014 Form 10-K.
Our exchange-based market-making activities are subject to extensive regulation by a number of securities exchanges. As a market maker on exchanges, we are required to maintain orderly markets in the securities to which we are assigned.
The Dodd-Frank Act will result in additional regulation by the SEC, the CFTC and other regulators of our broker-dealer and regulated subsidiaries in a number of respects. The legislation calls for the imposition of expanded standards of care by market participants in dealing with clients and customers, including by providing the SEC with authority to adopt rules establishing fiduciary duties for broker-dealers and directing the SEC to examine and improve sales practices and disclosure by broker-dealers and investment advisers.
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Our broker-dealer and other subsidiaries will also be affected by rules recently adopted by federal agencies pursuant to the Dodd-Frank Act that require any person who organizes or initiates an asset-backed security transaction to retain a portion (generally, at least five percent) of any credit risk that the person conveys to a third party. Securitizations will also be affected by rules proposed by the SEC in September 2011 to implement the Dodd-Frank Acts prohibition against securitization participants engaging in any transaction that would involve or result in any material conflict of interest with an investor in a securitization transaction. The proposed rules would exempt bona fide market-making activities and risk-mitigating hedging activities in connection with securitization activities from the general prohibition.
The SEC, FINRA and regulators in various non-U.S. jurisdictions have imposed both conduct-based and disclosure-based requirements with respect to research reports and research analysts and may impose additional regulations.
Swaps, Derivatives and Commodities Regulation
The commodity futures, commodity options and swaps industry in the United States is subject to regulation under the U.S. Commodity Exchange Act. The CFTC is the federal agency charged with the administration of the CEA. In addition, the SEC is the federal agency charged with the regulation of security-based swaps. Several of Goldman Sachs subsidiaries, including GS&Co. and GSEC, are registered with the CFTC and act as futures commission merchants, commodity pool operators, commodity trading advisors or (as discussed below) swap dealers, and are subject to CFTC regulations. The rules and regulations of various self-regulatory organizations, such as the Chicago Board of Trade and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, other futures exchanges and the National Futures Association, also govern the commodity futures, commodity options and swaps activities of these entities. In addition, Goldman Sachs Financial Markets, L.P. is registered with the SEC as an OTC derivatives dealer and conducts certain OTC derivatives activities.
The Dodd-Frank Act provides for significantly increased regulation of, and restrictions on, derivative markets and transactions. In particular, the Dodd-Frank Act imposes the following requirements relating to swaps and security-based swaps:
| Real-time public and regulatory reporting of trade information for swaps and security-based swaps and large trader reporting for swaps; |
| Registration of swap dealers and major swap participants with the CFTC and of security-based swap dealers and major security-based swap participants with the SEC; |
| Position limits that cap exposure to derivatives on certain physical commodities; |
| Mandated clearing through central counterparties and execution through regulated exchanges or electronic facilities for certain swaps and security-based swaps; |
| New business conduct standards and other requirements for swap dealers, major swap participants, security-based swap dealers and major security-based swap participants, covering their relationships with counterparties, internal oversight and compliance structures, conflict of interest rules, internal information barriers, general and trade-specific record-keeping and risk management; |
| Margin requirements for trades that are not cleared through a central counterparty; and |
| Entity-level capital requirements for swap dealers, major swap participants, security-based swap dealers, and major security-based swap participants. |
The terms swaps and security-based swaps are generally defined broadly for purposes of these requirements, and can include a wide variety of derivative instruments in addition to those conventionally called swaps. The definition includes certain forward contracts, options, certain loan participations and guarantees of swaps, subject to certain exceptions, and relates to a wide variety of underlying assets or obligations, including currencies, commodities, interest or other monetary rates, yields, indices, securities, credit events, loans and other financial obligations.
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The CFTC is responsible for issuing rules relating to swaps, swap dealers and major swap participants, and the SEC is responsible for issuing rules relating to security-based swaps, security-based swap dealers and major security-based swap participants. Although the CFTC has not yet finalized its margin requirements or capital regulations, certain of the requirements, including registration of swap dealers, mandatory clearing of certain swaps, business conduct standards and real-time public trade reporting, have taken effect already under CFTC rules, and the SEC and the CFTC have finalized the definitions of a number of key terms. Finally, the CFTC has commenced making determinations regarding which swaps must be traded on swap execution facilities or exchanges, and certain interest rate swaps and credit default swaps are now subject to these trade-execution requirements. The CFTC is expected to continue to make such determinations during 2015.
In September 2014, the U.S. federal bank regulatory agencies (acting jointly) and the CFTC issued separate but similar proposals that would impose mandatory margining requirements for certain swaps that are not cleared.
The SEC has proposed rules to impose margin, capital and segregation requirements for security-based swap dealers and major security-based swap participants. The SEC has also proposed rules relating to registration of security-based swap dealers and major security-based swap participants, trade reporting and real-time reporting, and business conduct requirements for security-based swap dealers and major security-based swap participants. The SEC has proposed, but not yet finalized, rules that would govern the design of new trading venues for security-based swaps and establish the process for determining which products must be traded on these venues.
We have registered certain subsidiaries as swap dealers under the CFTC rules, including GS&Co., GS Bank USA, GSI and J. Aron & Company. We expect that these entities, and our businesses more broadly, will be subject to significant and developing regulation and regulatory oversight in connection with swap-related activities.
Similar regulations have been proposed or adopted in jurisdictions outside the United States, including the adoption of standardized execution and clearing, margining and reporting requirements for OTC derivatives. For instance, the EU has established regulatory requirements for OTC derivatives activities under the European Market Infrastructure Regulation, including requirements relating to portfolio reconciliation and reporting, which have already taken effect, as well as requirements relating to clearing and margining for uncleared derivatives, which are currently expected to be finalized during 2015.
The full application of new derivatives rules across different national and regulatory jurisdictions has not yet been fully established. In July 2013, the CFTC finalized guidance and timing on the cross-border regulation of swaps and announced that it had reached an understanding with the European Commission regarding the cross-border regulation of derivatives and the common goals underlying their respective regulations. In June 2014, the SEC issued rules and guidance on cross-border security-based swap activities. However, specific determinations of the extent to which regulators in each of the relevant jurisdictions will defer to regulations in other jurisdictions have not yet been completed. The full impact of the various U.S. and non-U.S. regulatory developments in this area will not be known with certainty until all the rules are finalized and implemented and market practices and structures develop under the final rules.
J. Aron & Company is authorized by the U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to sell wholesale physical power at market-based rates. As a FERC-authorized power marketer, J. Aron & Company is subject to regulation under the U.S. Federal Power Act and FERC regulations and to the oversight of FERC. As a result of our investing activities, Group Inc. is also an exempt holding company under the U.S. Public Utility Holding Company Act of 2005 and applicable FERC rules.
In addition, as a result of our power-related and commodities activities, we are subject to energy, environmental and other governmental laws and regulations, as discussed under Risk Factors Our commodities activities, particularly our physical commodities activities, subject us to extensive regulation and involve certain potential risks, including environmental, reputational and other risks that may expose us to significant liabilities and costs in Part I, Item 1A of the 2014 Form 10-K.
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Investment Management Regulation
Our investment management business is subject to significant regulation in numerous jurisdictions around the world relating to, among other things, the safeguarding of client assets, offerings of funds, marketing activities, transactions among affiliates and our management of client funds.
Certain of our subsidiaries are registered with, and subject to oversight by, the SEC as investment advisers. In July 2014, the SEC adopted amendments to the rules that govern SEC-registered money market mutual funds. The new rules require institutional prime money market funds to value their portfolio securities using market-based factors and to sell and redeem their shares based on a floating net asset value. In addition, the rules allow, in certain circumstances, for the board of directors of money market mutual funds to impose liquidity fees and redemption gates and also require additional disclosure, reporting and stress testing. We are currently evaluating the impact of the rules. The firms money market mutual funds will be required to comply with the amendments relating to floating net asset value, fees and redemption gates in 2016, with certain reporting requirements becoming effective in 2015.
Other Regulation
The U.S. and non-U.S. government agencies, regulatory bodies and self-regulatory organizations, as well as state securities commissions and other state regulators in the United States, are empowered to conduct administrative proceedings that can result in censure, fine, the issuance of cease-and-desist orders, or the suspension or expulsion of a regulated entity or its directors, officers or employees. In addition, a number of our other activities require us to obtain licenses, adhere to applicable regulations and be subject to the oversight of various regulators in the jurisdictions in which we conduct these activities. Regulatory oversight has been increasing, as well as the level of fines and penalties imposed by regulatory agencies. Our subsidiaries are subject to various and numerous requests for information, investigations and proceedings, and sanctions have been imposed for infractions of various regulations relating to our activities.
In Europe, we provide investment services that are subject to oversight by national regulators as well as EU regulators. These investment services are regulated in accordance with national laws, many of which implement EU directives, and increasingly by directly applicable EU regulations. These national and EU laws require, among other things, compliance with certain capital adequacy standards, customer protection requirements and market conduct and trade reporting rules.
We provide investment services in and from the United Kingdom under the regulation of the PRA and the FCA. GSI, our regulated U.K. broker-dealer subsidiary, is subject to the capital requirements imposed by the PRA. Other subsidiaries, including Goldman Sachs International Bank (GSIB), our regulated U.K. bank, are also regulated by the PRA and the FCA. As of December 2014, GSI and GSIB were in compliance with the PRA capital requirements. See Managements Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations Equity Capital Management and Regulatory Capital Subsidiary Capital Requirements in Part II, Item 7 of the 2014 Form 10-K for information about GSIs capital ratios.
Various of our other entities are regulated by the banking and securities regulatory authorities of the European countries in which they operate, including, among others, the Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) and the Bundesbank in Germany, the Autorité de Contrôle Prudentiel and the Autorité des Marchés Financiers in France, the Central Bank of the Russian Federation and the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority. In November 2014, a new Single Supervisory Mechanism became effective, under which the European Central Bank and national supervisors both have certain regulatory responsibilities for banks in participating EU member states. While the U.K. does not participate in this new mechanism, it gives new powers to the European Central Bank to take regulatory action with regard to the firms banks in Germany and France.
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The EU finalized the Markets in Financial Instruments Regulation and a revision of the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive, both of which will become effective in January 2017. These will include new market structure-related, reporting, investor protection-related and organizational requirements, including requirements on pre- and post-trade transparency, requirements to use certain venues when trading financial instruments (which includes certain derivative instruments), requirements affecting the way investment managers can obtain research, powers of regulators to impose position limits and provisions on regulatory sanctions.
The EU and national financial legislators and regulators have proposed or adopted numerous further market reforms that may impact our businesses. These include stricter capital and liquidity requirements, including finalized legislation to implement Basel III capital requirements for certain of our EU subsidiaries (such as GSI). These market reforms also include rules on the separation of certain trading activities from deposit taking and on indices that are used as benchmarks for financial instruments or funds. In addition, the European Commission, the European Securities Market Authority and the European Banking Authority have announced or are formulating regulatory standards and other measures which will impact our European operations. Certain Goldman Sachs entities are also regulated by the European securities, derivatives and commodities exchanges of which they are members.
In September 2011, the European Commission published a draft proposal for a common system of financial transactions tax. The proposed financial transactions tax is broad in scope and would apply to transactions in a wide variety of financial instruments and derivatives. The draft legislation is still subject to agreement by the EU member states, as well as legislative approval, and the full impact of the proposal will not be known until the legislation is finalized.
Goldman Sachs Japan Co., Ltd. (GSJCL), our regulated Japanese broker-dealer, is subject to the capital requirements imposed by Japans Financial Services Agency. As of December 2014, GSJCL was in compliance with its capital adequacy requirements. GSJCL is also regulated by the Tokyo Stock Exchange, the Osaka Exchange, the Tokyo Financial Exchange, the Japan Securities Dealers Association, the Tokyo Commodity Exchange, Securities and Exchange Surveillance Commission, Bank of Japan, the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, among others.
Also, the Securities and Futures Commission in Hong Kong, the Monetary Authority of Singapore, the China Securities Regulatory Commission, the Korean Financial Supervisory Service, the Reserve Bank of India, the Securities and Exchange Board of India, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission and the Australian Securities Exchange, among others, regulate various of our subsidiaries and also have capital standards and other requirements comparable to the rules of the SEC. Various other Goldman Sachs entities are regulated by the banking and regulatory authorities in jurisdictions in which Goldman Sachs operates, including, among others, Brazil and Dubai.
The U.S. Bank Secrecy Act (BSA), as amended by the USA PATRIOT Act of 2001 (PATRIOT Act), contains anti-money laundering and financial transparency laws and mandated the implementation of various regulations applicable to all financial institutions, including standards for verifying client identification at account opening, and obligations to monitor client transactions and report suspicious activities. Through these and other provisions, the BSA and the PATRIOT Act seek to promote the identification of parties that may be involved in terrorism, money laundering or other suspicious activities. Anti-money laundering laws outside the United States contain some similar provisions.
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In addition, we are subject to laws and regulations worldwide, including the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and the U.K. Bribery Act, relating to corrupt and illegal payments to, and hiring practices with regard to, government officials and others. The obligation of financial institutions, including Goldman Sachs, to identify their clients, to monitor for and report suspicious transactions, to monitor direct and indirect payments to government officials, to respond to requests for information by regulatory authorities and law enforcement agencies, and to share information with other financial institutions, has required the implementation and maintenance of internal practices, procedures and controls that have increased, and may continue to increase, our costs, and any failure with respect to our programs in this area could subject us to substantial liability and regulatory fines.
As discussed above, many of our subsidiaries are subject to regulatory capital requirements in jurisdictions throughout the world. Subsidiaries not subject to separate regulation may hold capital to satisfy local tax guidelines, rating agency requirements or internal policies, including policies concerning the minimum amount of capital a subsidiary should hold based upon its underlying risk.
Certain of our businesses are subject to compliance with regulations enacted by U.S. federal and state governments, the EU or other jurisdictions and/or enacted by various regulatory organizations or exchanges relating to the privacy of the information of clients, employees or others, and any failure to comply with these regulations could expose us to liability and/or reputational damage.
Our internet address is www.gs.com and the investor relations section of our web site is located at www.gs.com/shareholders. We make available free of charge through the investor relations section of our web site, annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and current reports on Form 8-K and amendments to those reports filed or furnished pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (Exchange Act), as well as proxy statements, as soon as reasonably practicable after we electronically file such material with, or furnish it to, the SEC. Also posted on our web site, and available in print upon request of any shareholder to our Investor Relations Department, are our certificate of incorporation and by-laws, charters for our Audit Committee, Risk Committee, Compensation Committee, and Corporate Governance, Nominating and Public Responsibilities Committee, our Policy Regarding Director Independence Determinations, our Policy on Reporting of Concerns Regarding Accounting and Other Matters, our Corporate Governance Guidelines and our Code of Business Conduct and Ethics governing our directors, officers and employees. Within the time period required by the SEC, we will post on our web site any amendment to the Code of Business Conduct and Ethics and any waiver applicable to any executive officer, director or senior financial officer.
In addition, our web site includes information concerning:
| Purchases and sales of our equity securities by our executive officers and directors; |
| Disclosure relating to certain non-GAAP financial measures (as defined in the SECs Regulation G) that we may make public orally, telephonically, by webcast, by broadcast or by similar means from time to time; |
| Dodd-Frank Act stress test results; and |
| The firms risk management practices and regulatory capital ratios, as required under the disclosure-related provisions of the Revised Capital Framework, which are based on the third pillar of Basel III. |
Our Investor Relations Department can be contacted at The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., 200 West Street, 29th Floor, New York, New York 10282, Attn: Investor Relations, telephone: 212-902-0300, e-mail: gs-investor-relations@gs.com.
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Cautionary Statement Pursuant to the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 |
We have included or incorporated by reference in the 2014 Form 10-K, and from time to time our management may make, statements that may constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are not historical facts, but instead represent only our beliefs regarding future events, many of which, by their nature, are inherently uncertain and outside our control. These statements include statements other than historical information or statements of current condition and may relate to our future plans and objectives and results, among other things, and may also include statements about the effect of changes to the capital and leverage rules applicable to banks and bank holding companies, the impact of the Dodd-Frank Act on our businesses and operations, and various legal proceedings or mortgage-related contingencies as set forth under Legal Proceedings and Certain Mortgage-Related Contingencies in Notes 27 and 18, respectively, to the consolidated financial statements in Part II, Item 8 of the 2014 Form 10-K, as well as statements about the results of our Dodd-Frank Act and firm stress tests, statements about the objectives and effectiveness of our business continuity plan, information security program, risk management and liquidity policies, statements about trends in or growth opportunities for our businesses, statements about our future status, activities or reporting under U.S. or non-U.S. banking and financial regulation, and statements about our investment banking transaction backlog.
By identifying these statements for you in this manner, we are alerting you to the possibility that our actual results and financial condition may differ, possibly materially, from the anticipated results and financial condition indicated in these forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause our actual results and financial condition to differ from those indicated in the forward-looking statements include, among others, those discussed below and under Risk Factors in Part I, Item 1A of the 2014 Form 10-K.
In the case of statements about our investment banking transaction backlog, such statements are subject to the risk that the terms of these transactions may be modified or that they may not be completed at all; therefore, the net revenues, if any, that we actually earn from these transactions may differ, possibly materially, from those currently expected. Important factors that could result in a modification of the terms of a transaction or a transaction not being completed include, in the case of underwriting transactions, a decline or continued weakness in general economic conditions, outbreak of hostilities, volatility in the securities markets generally or an adverse development with respect to the issuer of the securities and, in the case of financial advisory transactions, a decline in the securities markets, an inability to obtain adequate financing, an adverse development with respect to a party to the transaction or a failure to obtain a required regulatory approval. For a discussion of other important factors that could adversely affect our investment banking transactions, see Risk Factors in Part I, Item 1A of the 2014 Form 10-K.
We have voluntarily provided in this filing information regarding the firms capital ratios, including the estimated CET1 ratios under the Advanced and Standardized approaches on a fully phased-in basis, as well as the LCR and estimated supplementary leverage ratios for the firm and GS Bank USA. The statements with respect to these estimated ratios are forward-looking statements, based on our current interpretation, expectations and understandings of the relevant regulatory rules and guidance, and reflect significant assumptions concerning the treatment of various assets and liabilities and the manner in which the ratios are calculated. As a result, the methods used to calculate these ratios may differ, possibly materially, from those used in calculating the estimates for any future voluntary disclosures as well as those used when such ratios are required to be disclosed. The ultimate methods of calculating the ratios will depend on, among other things, implementation guidance or further rulemaking from the U.S. federal bank regulatory agencies and the development of market practices and standards.
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We face a variety of risks that are substantial and inherent in our businesses, including market, liquidity, credit, operational, legal, regulatory and reputational risks. The following are some of the more important factors that could affect our businesses.
Our businesses have been and may continue to be adversely affected by conditions in the global financial markets and economic conditions generally.
Our businesses, by their nature, do not produce predictable earnings, and all of our businesses are materially affected by conditions in the global financial markets and economic conditions generally, both directly and through their impact on client activity levels. These conditions can change suddenly and very negatively.
Our financial performance is highly dependent on the environment in which our businesses operate. A favorable business environment is generally characterized by, among other factors, high global gross domestic product growth, transparent, liquid and efficient capital markets, low inflation, high business and investor confidence, stable geopolitical conditions, regulatory certainty and strong business earnings. Unfavorable or uncertain economic and market conditions can be caused by: concerns about sovereign defaults; uncertainty in U.S. federal fiscal or monetary policy, the U.S. federal debt ceiling and the continued funding of the U.S. government; uncertainty about the timing and nature of regulatory reforms; declines in economic growth, business activity or investor or business confidence; limitations on the availability or increases in the cost of credit and capital; increases in inflation, interest rates, exchange rate volatility, default rates or the price of basic commodities; outbreaks of hostilities or other geopolitical instability; corporate, political or other scandals that reduce investor confidence in capital markets; extreme weather events or other natural disasters or pandemics; or a combination of these or other factors.
In 2008 and through early 2009, the financial services industry and the securities markets generally were materially and adversely affected by significant declines in the values of nearly all asset classes and by a serious lack of liquidity. Since 2011, concerns about European sovereign debt risk and its impact on the European banking system, and about changes in market conditions or actual changes in market conditions, have resulted, at times, in significant volatility while negatively impacting the levels of client activity.
General uncertainty about economic, political and market activities, and the timing and final implementation of regulatory reform, as well as weak consumer, investor and CEO confidence resulting in large part from such uncertainty, continues to negatively impact client activity, which adversely affects many of our businesses. Periods of low volatility and periods of high volatility combined with a lack of liquidity, have at times had an unfavorable impact on our market-making businesses.
Our revenues and profitability and those of our competitors have been and will continue to be impacted by requirements relating to capital, leverage, minimum liquidity and long-term funding levels, requirements related to resolution and recovery planning, derivatives clearing and margin rules and levels of regulatory oversight, as well as limitations on whether and how certain business activities may be carried out by financial institutions. Although interest rates are at or near historically low levels, financial institution returns have also been negatively impacted by increased funding costs due in part to the withdrawal of perceived government support of such institutions in the event of future financial crises. In addition, liquidity in the financial markets may also be negatively impacted as market participants and market practices and structures adjust to new regulations.
The degree to which these and other changes resulting from the financial crisis will have a long-term impact on the profitability of financial institutions will depend on the final interpretation and implementation of new regulations, the manner in which markets, market participants and financial institutions adapt to the new landscape, and the prevailing economic and financial market conditions. However, there is a risk that such changes will, at least in the near-term, continue to negatively impact the absolute level of revenues, profitability and return on equity at our firm and at other financial institutions.
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Our businesses and those of our clients are subject to extensive and pervasive regulation around the world.
As a participant in the financial services industry and a systemically important financial institution, we are subject to extensive regulation in jurisdictions around the world. We face the risk of significant intervention by regulatory and taxing authorities in all jurisdictions in which we conduct our businesses. Among other things, as a result of regulators or private parties challenging our compliance with existing laws and regulations, we could be fined, prohibited from engaging in some of our business activities, subject to limitations or conditions on our business activities or subjected to new or substantially higher taxes or other governmental charges in connection with the conduct of our businesses or with respect to our employees. In many cases, our activities may be subject to overlapping and divergent regulation in different jurisdictions.
There is also the risk that new laws or regulations or changes in enforcement of existing laws or regulations applicable to our businesses or those of our clients, including capital, liquidity, leverage and margin requirements, restrictions on leveraged lending or other business practices, reporting requirements, tax burdens and compensation restrictions, could be imposed on a limited subset of financial institutions (either based on size, activities, geography or other criteria), which may adversely affect our ability to compete effectively with other institutions that are not affected in the same way. In addition, regulation imposed on financial institutions or market participants generally, such as taxes on financial transactions, could adversely impact levels of market activity more broadly, and thus impact our businesses.
These developments could impact our profitability in the affected jurisdictions, or even make it uneconomic for us to continue to conduct all or certain of our businesses in such jurisdictions, or could cause us to incur significant costs associated with changing our business practices, restructuring our businesses, moving all or certain of our businesses and our employees to other locations or complying with applicable capital requirements, including liquidating assets or raising capital in a manner that adversely increases our funding costs or otherwise adversely affects our shareholders and creditors.
U.S. and non-U.S. regulatory developments, in particular the Dodd-Frank Act and Basel III, have significantly altered the regulatory framework within which we operate and may adversely affect our competitive position and profitability. As discussed further under Business Regulation, in Part I, Item 1 of the 2014 Form 10-K, in December 2013, final rules were adopted to implement the provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act referred to as the Volcker Rule, which will prohibit proprietary trading and will limit our sponsorship of, and investment in, covered funds. Based on what we know as of the date of this filing, we do not expect the impact of the prohibition on proprietary trading to be material to our financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.
However, given that the rule is highly complex, and its full impact will not be known until market practices are fully developed, the implementation of the rule and the related market changes could negatively impact our businesses and expose us to increased liability for inadvertent breaches and reporting failures. Among the other aspects of the Dodd-Frank Act most likely to affect our businesses are: increased capital, liquidity and reporting requirements; increased regulation of and restrictions on OTC derivatives markets and transactions; limitations on incentive compensation; limitations on affiliate transactions; requirements to reorganize or limit activities in connection with recovery and resolution planning; increased deposit insurance assessments; and increased standards of care for broker-dealers in dealing with clients. The implementation of higher capital requirements, the liquidity coverage ratio and the net stable funding ratio under Basel III may also adversely affect our profitability and competitive position, particularly if the requirements do not apply, or do not apply equally, to our competitors or are not implemented uniformly across jurisdictions.
As discussed under Business Regulation Capital and Liquidity Requirements Payment of Dividends and Stock Repurchases in Part I, Item 1 of the 2014 Form 10-K, Group Inc.s proposed capital actions and capital plan are reviewed by the Federal Reserve Board as part of the CCAR process. If the Federal Reserve Board objects to our proposed capital actions in our capital plan, Group Inc. could be prohibited from taking such capital actions, including increasing or paying dividends on common or preferred stock or repurchasing common stock or other capital securities. Our inability to carry out our proposed capital actions could, among other things, prevent us from returning capital to our shareholders and impact our return on equity.
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We are also subject to laws and regulations relating to the privacy of the information of clients, employees or others, and any failure to comply with these regulations could expose us to liability and/or reputational damage. In addition, our businesses are increasingly subject to laws and regulations relating to surveillance, encryption and data on-shoring in the jurisdictions in which we operate. Compliance with these laws and regulations may require us to change our policies, procedures and technology for information security (including cyber security), which could, among other things, make us more vulnerable to cyber attacks and misappropriation, corruption or loss of information or technology.
In addition, the attorneys general of a number of states have filed lawsuits against financial institutions alleging, among other things, that the centralized system of recording mortgages and designating a common entity as the mortgage holder is in violation of state law, and other authorities have brought similar actions or indicated that they are contemplating bringing such actions. If this system and related practices are deemed invalid, it may call into question the validity or enforceability of certain mortgage-related obligations under securitizations and other transactions in which we have participated, negatively impact the market for mortgages and mortgage-related products and our mortgage-related activities, or subject us to additional costs or penalties.
Increasingly, regulators and courts have sought to hold financial institutions liable for the misconduct of their clients where such regulators and courts have determined that the financial institution should have detected that the client was engaged in wrongdoing, even though the financial institution had no direct knowledge of the activities engaged in by its client. Regulators and courts have also increasingly found liability as a control person for activities of entities in which financial institutions or funds controlled by financial institutions have an investment, but which they do not actively manage. In addition, regulators and courts continue to seek to establish fiduciary obligations to counterparties to which no such duty had been assumed to exist. To the extent that such efforts are successful, the cost of, and liabilities associated with, engaging in brokerage, clearing, market-making, prime brokerage, investing and other similar activities could increase significantly.
For a discussion of the extensive regulation to which our businesses are subject, see Business Regulation in Part I, Item 1 of the 2014 Form 10-K.
Our businesses have been and may be adversely affected by declining asset values. This is particularly true for those businesses in which we have net long positions, receive fees based on the value of assets managed, or receive or post collateral.
Many of our businesses have net long positions in debt securities, loans, derivatives, mortgages, equities (including private equity and real estate) and most other asset classes. These include positions we take when we act as a principal to facilitate our clients activities, including our exchange-based market-making activities, or commit large amounts of capital to maintain positions in interest rate and credit products, as well as through our currencies, commodities, equities and mortgage-related activities. Because substantially all of these investing, lending and market-making positions are marked-to-market on a daily basis, declines in asset values directly and immediately impact our earnings, unless we have effectively hedged our exposures to such declines.
In certain circumstances (particularly in the case of leveraged loans and private equities or other securities that are not freely tradable or lack established and liquid trading markets), it may not be possible or economic to hedge such exposures and to the extent that we do so the hedge may be ineffective or may greatly reduce our ability to profit from increases in the values of the assets. Sudden declines and significant volatility in the prices of assets may substantially curtail or eliminate the trading markets for certain assets, which may make it very difficult to sell, hedge or value such assets. The inability to sell or effectively hedge assets reduces our ability to limit losses in such positions and the difficulty in valuing assets may negatively affect our capital, liquidity or leverage ratios, increase our funding costs and generally require us to maintain additional capital.
In our exchange-based market-making activities, we are obligated by stock exchange rules to maintain an orderly market, including by purchasing securities in a declining market. In markets where asset values are declining and in volatile markets, this results in losses and an increased need for liquidity.
We receive asset-based management fees based on the value of our clients portfolios or investment in funds managed by us and, in some cases, we also receive incentive fees based on increases in the value of such investments. Declines in asset values reduce the value of our clients portfolios or fund assets, which in turn reduce the fees we earn for managing such assets.
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We post collateral to support our obligations and receive collateral to support the obligations of our clients and counterparties in connection with our client execution businesses. When the value of the assets posted as collateral declines, the party posting the collateral may need to provide additional collateral or, if possible, reduce its trading position. A classic example of such a situation is a margin call in connection with a brokerage account. Therefore, declines in the value of asset classes used as collateral mean that either the cost of funding positions is increased or the size of positions is decreased. If we are the party providing collateral, this can increase our costs and reduce our profitability and if we are the party receiving collateral, this can also reduce our profitability by reducing the level of business done with our clients and counterparties. In addition, volatile or less liquid markets increase the difficulty of valuing assets which can lead to costly and time-consuming disputes over asset values and the level of required collateral, as well as increased credit risk to the recipient of the collateral due to delays in receiving adequate collateral.
Our businesses have been and may be adversely affected by disruptions in the credit markets, including reduced access to credit and higher costs of obtaining credit.
Widening credit spreads, as well as significant declines in the availability of credit, have in the past adversely affected our ability to borrow on a secured and unsecured basis and may do so in the future. We fund ourselves on an unsecured basis by issuing long-term debt, by accepting deposits at our bank subsidiaries, by issuing hybrid financial instruments, or by obtaining bank loans or lines of credit. We seek to finance many of our assets on a secured basis. Any disruptions in the credit markets may make it harder and more expensive to obtain funding for our businesses. If our available funding is limited or we are forced to fund our operations at a higher cost, these conditions may require us to curtail our business activities and increase our cost of funding, both of which could reduce our profitability, particularly in our businesses that involve investing, lending and market making.
Our clients engaging in mergers and acquisitions often rely on access to the secured and unsecured credit markets to finance their transactions. A lack of available credit or an increased cost of credit can adversely affect the size, volume and timing of our clients merger and acquisition transactions particularly large transactions and adversely affect our financial advisory and underwriting businesses.
In addition, we may incur significant unrealized gains or losses due solely to changes in our credit spreads or those of third parties, as these changes may affect the fair value of our derivative instruments and the debt securities that we hold or issue, which may in turn adversely affect our results of operations and capital ratios.
Our market-making activities have been and may be affected by changes in the levels of market volatility.
Certain of our market-making activities depend on market volatility to provide trading and arbitrage opportunities to our clients, and decreases in volatility may reduce these opportunities and adversely affect the results of these activities. On the other hand, increased volatility, while it can increase trading volumes and spreads, also increases risk as measured by Value-at-Risk (VaR) and may expose us to increased risks in connection with our market-making activities or cause us to reduce our market-making positions in order to avoid increasing our VaR. Limiting the size of our market-making positions can adversely affect our profitability. In periods when volatility is increasing, but asset values are declining significantly, it may not be possible to sell assets at all or it may only be possible to do so at steep discounts. In such circumstances we may be forced to either take on additional risk or to incur losses in order to decrease our VaR. In addition, increases in volatility increase the level of our RWAs, which increases our capital requirements.
Our investment banking, client execution and investment management businesses have been adversely affected and may continue to be adversely affected by market uncertainty or lack of confidence among investors and CEOs due to general declines in economic activity and other unfavorable economic, geopolitical or market conditions.
Our investment banking business has been and may continue to be adversely affected by market conditions. Poor economic conditions and other adverse geopolitical conditions can adversely affect and have in the past adversely affected investor and CEO confidence, resulting in significant industry-wide declines in the size and number of underwritings and of financial advisory transactions, which could have an adverse effect on our revenues and our profit margins. In particular, because a significant portion of our investment banking revenues is derived from our participation in large transactions, a decline in the number of large transactions would adversely affect our investment banking business.
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THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
In certain circumstances, market uncertainty or general declines in market or economic activity may affect our client execution businesses by decreasing levels of overall activity or by decreasing volatility, but at other times market uncertainty and even declining economic activity may result in higher trading volumes or higher spreads or both.
Market uncertainty, volatility and adverse economic conditions, as well as declines in asset values, may cause our clients to transfer their assets out of our funds or other products or their brokerage accounts and result in reduced net revenues, principally in our investment management business. To the extent that clients do not withdraw their funds, they may invest them in products that generate less fee income.
Our investment management business may be affected by the poor investment performance of our investment products.
Poor investment returns in our investment management business, due to either general market conditions or underperformance (relative to our competitors or to benchmarks) by funds or accounts that we manage or investment products that we design or sell, affects our ability to retain existing assets and to attract new clients or additional assets from existing clients. This could affect the management and incentive fees that we earn on assets under supervision or the commissions and net spreads that we earn for selling other investment products, such as structured notes or derivatives.
We may incur losses as a result of ineffective risk management processes and strategies.
We seek to monitor and control our risk exposure through a risk and control framework encompassing a variety of separate but complementary financial, credit, operational, compliance and legal reporting systems, internal controls, management review processes and other mechanisms. Our risk management process seeks to balance our ability to profit from market-making, investing or lending positions with our exposure to potential losses. While we employ a broad and diversified set of risk monitoring and risk mitigation techniques, those techniques and the judgments that accompany their application cannot anticipate every economic and financial outcome or the specifics and timing of such outcomes. Thus, we may, in the course of our activities, incur losses. Market conditions in recent years have involved unprecedented dislocations and highlight the limitations inherent in using historical data to manage risk.
The models that we use to assess and control our risk exposures reflect assumptions about the degrees of correlation or lack thereof among prices of various asset classes or other market indicators. In times of market stress or other unforeseen circumstances, such as occurred during 2008 and early 2009, and to some extent since 2011, previously uncorrelated indicators may become correlated, or conversely previously correlated indicators may move in different directions. These types of market movements have at times limited the effectiveness of our hedging strategies and have caused us to incur significant losses, and they may do so in the future. These changes in correlation can be exacerbated where other market participants are using risk or trading models with assumptions or algorithms that are similar to ours. In these and other cases, it may be difficult to reduce our risk positions due to the activity of other market participants or widespread market dislocations, including circumstances where asset values are declining significantly or no market exists for certain assets.
To the extent that we have positions through our market-making or origination activities or we make investments directly through our investing activities, including private equity, that do not have an established liquid trading market or are otherwise subject to restrictions on sale or hedging, we may not be able to reduce our positions and therefore reduce our risk associated with such positions. In addition, to the extent permitted by applicable law and regulation, we invest our own capital in private equity, credit, real estate and hedge funds that we manage and limitations on our ability to withdraw some or all of our investments in these funds, whether for legal, reputational or other reasons, may make it more difficult for us to control the risk exposures relating to these investments.
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THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Prudent risk management, as well as regulatory restrictions, may cause us to limit our exposure to counterparties, geographic areas or markets, which may limit our business opportunities and increase the cost of our funding or hedging activities.
For a further discussion of our risk management policies and procedures, see Managements Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations Risk Management and Risk Factors in Part II, Item 7 of the 2014 Form 10-K.
Our liquidity, profitability and businesses may be adversely affected by an inability to access the debt capital markets or to sell assets or by a reduction in our credit ratings or by an increase in our credit spreads.
Liquidity is essential to our businesses. Our liquidity may be impaired by an inability to access secured and/or unsecured debt markets, an inability to access funds from our subsidiaries, an inability to sell assets or redeem our investments, or unforeseen outflows of cash or collateral. This situation may arise due to circumstances that we may be unable to control, such as a general market disruption or an operational problem that affects third parties or us, or even by the perception among market participants that we, or other market participants, are experiencing greater liquidity risk.
The financial instruments that we hold and the contracts to which we are a party are often complex, as we employ structured products to benefit our clients and hedge our own risks, and these complex structured products often do not have readily available markets to access in times of liquidity stress. Our investing and lending activities may lead to situations where the holdings from these activities represent a significant portion of specific markets, which could restrict liquidity for our positions.
Further, our ability to sell assets may be impaired if other market participants are seeking to sell similar assets at the same time, as is likely to occur in a liquidity or other market crisis or in response to changes to rules or regulations. In addition, financial institutions with which we interact may exercise set-off rights or the right to require additional collateral, including in difficult market conditions, which could further impair our access to liquidity.
Our credit ratings are important to our liquidity. A reduction in our credit ratings could adversely affect our liquidity and competitive position, increase our borrowing costs, limit our access to the capital markets or trigger our obligations under certain provisions in some of our trading and collateralized financing contracts. Under these provisions, counterparties could be permitted to terminate contracts with Goldman Sachs or require us to post additional collateral. Termination of our trading and collateralized financing contracts could cause us to sustain losses and impair our liquidity by requiring us to find other sources of financing or to make significant cash payments or securities movements. Certain rating agencies have indicated that the Dodd-Frank Act could result in the rating agencies reducing their assumed level of government support and therefore result in ratings downgrades for certain large financial institutions, including Goldman Sachs. As of December 2014, each of Standard & Poors Ratings Services and Ratings and Investment Information, Inc. had issued a negative outlook on our long-term credit ratings. As of December 2014, in the event of a one-notch and two-notch downgrade of our credit ratings our counterparties could have called for additional collateral or termination payments related to our net derivative liabilities under bilateral agreements in an aggregate amount of $1.07 billion and $2.82 billion, respectively. A downgrade by any one rating agency, depending on the agencys relative ratings of the firm at the time of the downgrade, may have an impact which is comparable to the impact of a downgrade by all rating agencies. For a further discussion of our credit ratings, see Managements Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations Liquidity Risk Management Credit Ratings in Part II, Item 7 of the 2014 Form 10-K.
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THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Our cost of obtaining long-term unsecured funding is directly related to our credit spreads (the amount in excess of the interest rate of U.S. Treasury securities (or other benchmark securities) of the same maturity that we need to pay to our debt investors). Increases in our credit spreads can significantly increase our cost of this funding. Changes in credit spreads are continuous, market-driven, and subject at times to unpredictable and highly volatile movements. Our credit spreads are also influenced by market perceptions of our creditworthiness. In addition, our credit spreads may be influenced by movements in the costs to purchasers of credit default swaps referenced to our long-term debt. The market for credit default swaps, although very large, has proven to be extremely volatile and at times may lack a high degree of structure or transparency.
Regulatory changes relating to liquidity may also negatively impact our results of operations and competitive position. Recently, numerous regulations have been adopted or proposed, and additional regulations are under consideration, to introduce more stringent liquidity requirements for large financial institutions. These regulations and others being considered address, among other matters, liquidity stress testing, minimum liquidity requirements, wholesale funding, limitations on the issuance of short-term debt and structured notes. These may overlap with, and be impacted by, other regulatory changes, including new guidance on the treatment of brokered deposits and the capital, leverage and resolution and recovery frameworks applicable to large financial institutions, as well as proposals relating to minimum long-term debt requirements and total loss-absorbing capacity. Given the overlap and complex interactions among these new and prospective regulations, they may have unintended cumulative effects, and their full impact will remain uncertain until implementation of post-financial crisis regulatory reform is complete.
A failure to appropriately identify and address potential conflicts of interest could adversely affect our businesses.
Due to the broad scope of our businesses and our client base, we regularly address potential conflicts of interest, including situations where our services to a particular client or our own investments or other interests conflict, or are perceived to conflict, with the interests of another client, as well as situations where one or more of our businesses have access to material non-public information that may not be shared with other businesses within the firm and situations where we may be a creditor of an entity with which we also have an advisory or other relationship.
In addition, our status as a bank holding company subjects us to heightened regulation and increased regulatory scrutiny by the Federal Reserve Board with respect to transactions between GS Bank USA and entities that are or could be viewed as affiliates of ours.
We have extensive procedures and controls that are designed to identify and address conflicts of interest, including those designed to prevent the improper sharing of information among our businesses. However, appropriately identifying and dealing with conflicts of interest is complex and difficult, and our reputation, which is one of our most important assets, could be damaged and the willingness of clients to enter into transactions with us may be affected if we fail, or appear to fail, to identify, disclose and deal appropriately with conflicts of interest. In addition, potential or perceived conflicts could give rise to litigation or regulatory enforcement actions.
Group Inc. is a holding company and is dependent for liquidity on payments from its subsidiaries, many of which are subject to restrictions.
Group Inc. is a holding company and, therefore, depends on dividends, distributions and other payments from its subsidiaries to fund dividend payments and to fund all payments on its obligations, including debt obligations. Many of our subsidiaries, including our broker-dealer and bank subsidiaries, are subject to laws that restrict dividend payments or authorize regulatory bodies to block or reduce the flow of funds from those subsidiaries to Group Inc.
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THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
In addition, our broker-dealer and bank subsidiaries are subject to restrictions on their ability to lend or transact with affiliates and to minimum regulatory capital and other requirements, as well as restrictions on their ability to use funds deposited with them in brokerage or bank accounts to fund their businesses. Additional restrictions on related-party transactions, increased capital and liquidity requirements and additional limitations on the use of funds on deposit in bank or brokerage accounts, as well as lower earnings, can reduce the amount of funds available to meet the obligations of Group Inc., including under the Federal Reserve Boards source of strength policy, and even require Group Inc. to provide additional funding to such subsidiaries. Restrictions or regulatory action of that kind could impede access to funds that Group Inc. needs to make payments on its obligations, including debt obligations, or dividend payments. In addition, Group Inc.s right to participate in a distribution of assets upon a subsidiarys liquidation or reorganization is subject to the prior claims of the subsidiarys creditors.
As a result of the 2008 financial crisis, there has been a trend towards increased regulation and supervision of our subsidiaries by the governments and regulators in the countries in which those subsidiaries are located or do business. Concerns about protecting clients and creditors of financial institutions that are controlled by persons or entities located outside of the country in which such entities are located or do business have caused or may cause a number of governments and regulators to take additional steps to ring fence such entities in order to protect clients and creditors of such entities in the event of financial difficulties involving such entities. The result has been and may continue to be additional limitations on our ability to efficiently move capital and liquidity among our affiliated entities, thereby increasing the overall level of capital and liquidity required by the firm on a consolidated basis.
Furthermore, Group Inc. has guaranteed the payment obligations of certain of its subsidiaries, including GS&Co., GS Bank USA and GSEC subject to certain exceptions, and has pledged significant assets to GS Bank USA to support obligations to GS Bank USA. In addition, Group Inc. guarantees many of the obligations of its other consolidated subsidiaries on a transaction-by-transaction basis, as negotiated with counterparties. These guarantees may require Group Inc. to provide substantial funds or assets to its subsidiaries or their creditors or counterparties at a time when Group Inc. is in need of liquidity to fund its own obligations.
The requirements for Group Inc. and GS Bank USA to develop and submit recovery and resolution plans to regulators, and the incorporation of feedback received from regulators, may require us to reduce our reliance on short-term funding, increase capital or liquidity levels at Group Inc. or particular subsidiaries or otherwise incur additional or duplicative operational or other costs at multiple entities, and may reduce our ability to provide Group Inc. guarantees of the obligations of our subsidiaries or raise debt at Group Inc. Resolution planning may also impair our ability to structure our intercompany and external activities in a manner that we may otherwise deem most operationally efficient. Furthermore, we may incur additional taxes. Any such limitations or requirements would be in addition to the legal and regulatory restrictions discussed above on our ability to engage in capital actions or make intercompany dividends or payments.
See Business Regulation in Part I, Item 1 of the 2014 Form 10-K for a further discussion of regulatory restrictions.
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THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
The application of regulatory strategies and requirements in the United States and non-U.S. jurisdictions to facilitate the orderly resolution of large financial institutions could create greater risk of loss for Group Inc.s security holders.
As discussed under Business Regulation Insolvency of an Insured Depository Institution or a Bank Holding Company, if the FDIC is appointed as receiver under the orderly liquidation authority, the rights of Group Inc.s creditors would be determined under the orderly liquidation authority, and substantial differences exist in the rights of creditors between the orderly liquidation authority and the U.S. Bankruptcy Code, including the right of the FDIC under the orderly liquidation authority to disregard the strict priority of creditor claims in some circumstances, which could have a material adverse effect on debt holders.
Although the FDICs single point of entry strategy is intended to result in better outcomes for creditors in connection with the resolution of a large financial institution, it is possible that this may not occur. One goal of the FDICs single point of entry strategy is to resolve a large financial institution in a manner that would, among other things, impose losses on shareholders, debt holders (including holders of structured notes) and other creditors of the top-tier holding company and permit the holding companys subsidiaries to continue to operate. It is possible that the application of the single point of entry strategy could result in greater losses to Group Inc.s security holders, including holders of structured notes and other debt securities, than the losses that could result from the application of a bankruptcy proceeding or a different resolution strategy for the firm.
In addition, certain jurisdictions, including the United Kingdom and the EU, have implemented, or are considering, changes to resolution regimes to provide resolution authorities with the ability to recapitalize a failing entity by writing down its unsecured debt or converting its unsecured debt into equity. Such bail-in powers are intended to enable the recapitalization of a failing institution by allocating losses to its shareholders and unsecured debt holders. U.S. and non-U.S. regulators are also considering requirements that large financial institutions and certain of their subsidiaries maintain minimum amounts of equity and debt (total loss-absorbing capacity) that would absorb losses in the event of failure.
Our resolution plan assumes that, in certain adverse scenarios, Group Inc. would recapitalize certain major subsidiaries, including through the forgiveness of intercompany indebtedness. If these recapitalization actions were unsuccessful in stabilizing these subsidiaries, Group Inc.s financial condition would be adversely impacted and equity and debt holders of Group Inc. may as a consequence be in a worse position than if the recapitalizations did not occur.
In August 2014, the Federal Reserve Board and the FDIC indicated that Group Inc., along with other large industry participants, had certain shortcomings in the 2013 resolution plans that must be addressed in the 2015 resolution plans. If Group Inc. is unable to effectively address these shortcomings, the Federal Reserve Board and the FDIC could, after any permitted resubmission, find our resolution plan not credible and require us to hold more capital, change our business structure or dispose of businesses, which could have a negative impact on our ability to return capital to shareholders, financial condition, results of operations or competitive position.
Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K | 33 |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Our businesses, profitability and liquidity may be adversely affected by deterioration in the credit quality of, or defaults by, third parties who owe us money, securities or other assets or whose securities or obligations we hold.
We are exposed to the risk that third parties that owe us money, securities or other assets will not perform their obligations. These parties may default on their obligations to us due to bankruptcy, lack of liquidity, operational failure or other reasons. A failure of a significant market participant, or even concerns about a default by such an institution, could lead to significant liquidity problems, losses or defaults by other institutions, which in turn could adversely affect us.
We are also subject to the risk that our rights against third parties may not be enforceable in all circumstances. In addition, deterioration in the credit quality of third parties whose securities or obligations we hold, including a deterioration in the value of collateral posted by third parties to secure their obligations to us under derivatives contracts and loan agreements, could result in losses and/or adversely affect our ability to rehypothecate or otherwise use those securities or obligations for liquidity purposes.
A significant downgrade in the credit ratings of our counterparties could also have a negative impact on our results. While in many cases we are permitted to require additional collateral from counterparties that experience financial difficulty, disputes may arise as to the amount of collateral we are entitled to receive and the value of pledged assets. The termination of contracts and the foreclosure on collateral may subject us to claims for the improper exercise of our rights. Default rates, downgrades and disputes with counterparties as to the valuation of collateral increase significantly in times of market stress and illiquidity.
As part of our clearing and prime brokerage activities, we finance our clients positions, and we could be held responsible for the defaults or misconduct of our clients. Although we regularly review credit exposures to specific clients and counterparties and to specific industries, countries and regions that we believe may present credit concerns, default risk may arise from events or circumstances that are difficult to detect or foresee.
Concentration of risk increases the potential for significant losses in our market-making, underwriting, investing and lending activities.
Concentration of risk increases the potential for significant losses in our market-making, underwriting, investing and lending activities. The number and size of such transactions may affect our results of operations in a given period. Moreover, because of concentration of risk, we may suffer losses even when economic and market conditions are generally favorable for our competitors. Disruptions in the credit markets can make it difficult to hedge these credit exposures effectively or economically. In addition, we extend large commitments as part of our credit origination activities.
Rules adopted under the Dodd-Frank Act require issuers of asset-backed securities and any person who organizes and initiates an asset-backed securities transaction to retain economic exposure to the asset, which is likely to significantly increase the cost to us of engaging in securitization activities. Our inability to reduce our credit risk by selling, syndicating or securitizing these positions, including during periods of market stress, could negatively affect our results of operations due to a decrease in the fair value of the positions, including due to the insolvency or bankruptcy of the borrower, as well as the loss of revenues associated with selling such securities or loans.
In the ordinary course of business, we may be subject to a concentration of credit risk to a particular counterparty, borrower, issuer, including sovereign issuers, or geographic area or group of related countries, such as the EU, and a failure or downgrade of, or default by, such entity could negatively impact our businesses, perhaps materially, and the systems by which we set limits and monitor the level of our credit exposure to individual entities, industries and countries may not function as we have anticipated. While our activities expose us to many different industries, counterparties and countries, we routinely execute a high volume of transactions with counterparties engaged in financial services activities, including brokers and dealers, commercial banks, clearing houses, exchanges and investment funds. This has resulted in significant credit concentration with respect to these counterparties. Provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act are expected to lead to increased centralization of trading activity through particular clearing houses, central agents or exchanges, which may increase our concentration of risk with respect to these entities.
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THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
The financial services industry is both highly competitive and interrelated.
The financial services industry and all of our businesses are intensely competitive, and we expect them to remain so. We compete on the basis of a number of factors, including transaction execution, our products and services, innovation, reputation, creditworthiness and price. Over time, there has been substantial consolidation and convergence among companies in the financial services industry. This trend accelerated over recent years as a result of numerous mergers and asset acquisitions among industry participants. This trend has also hastened the globalization of the securities and other financial services markets.
As a result, we have had to commit capital to support our international operations and to execute large global transactions. To the extent we expand into new business areas and new geographic regions, we will face competitors with more experience and more established relationships with clients, regulators and industry participants in the relevant market, which could adversely affect our ability to expand. Governments and regulators have recently adopted regulations, imposed taxes, adopted compensation restrictions or otherwise put forward various proposals that have or may impact our ability to conduct certain of our businesses in a cost-effective manner or at all in certain or all jurisdictions, including proposals relating to restrictions on the type of activities in which financial institutions are permitted to engage. These or other similar rules, many of which do not apply to all our U.S. or non-U.S. competitors, could impact our ability to compete effectively.
Pricing and other competitive pressures in our businesses have continued to increase, particularly in situations where some of our competitors may seek to increase market share by reducing prices. For example, in connection with investment banking and other assignments, we have experienced pressure to extend and price credit at levels that may not always fully compensate us for the risks we take.
The financial services industry is highly interrelated in that a very significant volume of transactions occur among members of that industry. Many transactions are syndicated to other financial institutions and financial institutions are often counterparties in transactions. This has led to claims by other market participants and regulators that such institutions have colluded in order to manipulate markets or market prices, including allegations that antitrust laws have been violated. While we have extensive procedures and controls that are designed to identify and prevent such activities, allegations of such activities, particularly by regulators, can have a very negative reputational impact and, if we are found to have engaged in such activities, subject us to large fines and settlements, and potentially very significant penalties, including treble damages.
We face enhanced risks as new business initiatives lead us to transact with a broader array of clients and counterparties and expose us to new asset classes and new markets.
A number of our recent and planned business initiatives and expansions of existing businesses may bring us into contact, directly or indirectly, with individuals and entities that are not within our traditional client and counterparty base and expose us to new asset classes and new markets. For example, we continue to transact business and invest in new regions, including a wide range of emerging and growth markets. Furthermore, in a number of our businesses, including where we make markets, invest and lend, we directly or indirectly own interests in, or otherwise become affiliated with the ownership and operation of public services, such as airports, toll roads and shipping ports, as well as physical commodities, mines, commodity warehouses and other commodities infrastructure components, both within and outside the United States. Deteriorating market conditions may lead to an increase in opportunities to acquire distressed assets and we may determine opportunistically to increase our exposure to these types of assets.
These activities expose us to new and enhanced risks, including risks associated with dealing with governmental entities, reputational concerns arising from dealing with less sophisticated counterparties and investors, greater regulatory scrutiny of these activities, increased credit-related, market, sovereign and operational risks, risks arising from accidents or acts of terrorism, and reputational concerns with the manner in which these assets are being operated or held.
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THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Derivative transactions and delayed settlements may expose us to unexpected risk and potential losses.
We are party to a large number of derivative transactions, including credit derivatives. Many of these derivative instruments are individually negotiated and non-standardized, which can make exiting, transferring or settling positions difficult. Many credit derivatives require that we deliver to the counterparty the underlying security, loan or other obligation in order to receive payment. In a number of cases, we do not hold the underlying security, loan or other obligation and may not be able to obtain the underlying security, loan or other obligation. This could cause us to forfeit the payments due to us under these contracts or result in settlement delays with the attendant credit and operational risk as well as increased costs to the firm.
Derivative transactions may also involve the risk that documentation has not been properly executed, that executed agreements may not be enforceable against the counterparty, or that obligations under such agreements may not be able to be netted against other obligations with such counterparty. In addition, counterparties may claim that such transactions were not appropriate or authorized.
As a signatory to the ISDA Protocol, we may not be able to exercise remedies against counterparties and, as this new regime has not yet been tested, we may suffer risks or losses that we would not have expected to suffer if we could immediately close out transactions upon a termination event. The ISDA Protocol contemplates adoption of implementing regulations by various U.S. and non-U.S. regulators, and the ISDA Protocols impact will depend on, among other things, how it is implemented.
Derivative contracts and other transactions, including secondary bank loan purchases and sales, entered into with third parties are not always confirmed by the counterparties or settled on a timely basis. While the transaction remains unconfirmed or during any delay in settlement, we are subject to heightened credit and operational risk and in the event of a default may find it more difficult to enforce our rights. In addition, as new complex derivative products are created, covering a wider array of underlying credit and other instruments, disputes about the terms of the underlying contracts could arise, which could impair our ability to effectively manage our risk exposures from these products and subject us to increased costs. The provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act requiring central clearing of credit derivatives and other OTC derivatives, or a market shift toward standardized derivatives, could reduce the risk associated with such transactions, but under certain circumstances could also limit our ability to develop derivatives that best suit the needs of our clients and to hedge our own risks, and could adversely affect our profitability and increase our credit exposure to such platform.
Our businesses may be adversely affected if we are unable to hire and retain qualified employees.
Our performance is largely dependent on the talents and efforts of highly skilled individuals; therefore, our continued ability to compete effectively in our businesses, to manage our businesses effectively and to expand into new businesses and geographic areas depends on our ability to attract new talented and diverse employees and to retain and motivate our existing employees. Factors that affect our ability to attract and retain such employees include our compensation and benefits, and our reputation as a successful business with a culture of fairly hiring, training and promoting qualified employees.
Competition from within the financial services industry and from businesses outside the financial services industry for qualified employees has often been intense. This is particularly the case in emerging and growth markets, where we are often competing for qualified employees with entities that have a significantly greater presence or more extensive experience in the region.
Changes in law or regulation in jurisdictions in which our operations are located that affect taxes on our employees income, or the amount or composition of compensation, may also adversely affect our ability to hire and retain qualified employees in those jurisdictions.
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THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
As described further in Business Regulation Bank Holding Company Regulation and Regulation Compensation Practices in Part I, Item 1 of the 2014 Form 10-K, our compensation practices are subject to review by, and the standards of, the Federal Reserve Board. As a large financial and banking institution, we are subject to limitations on compensation practices (which may or may not affect our competitors) by the Federal Reserve Board, the PRA, the FCA, the FDIC and other regulators worldwide. These limitations, including any imposed by or as a result of future legislation or regulation, may require us to alter our compensation practices in ways that could adversely affect our ability to attract and retain talented employees.
We may be adversely affected by increased governmental and regulatory scrutiny or negative publicity.
Governmental scrutiny from regulators, legislative bodies and law enforcement agencies with respect to matters relating to compensation, our business practices, our past actions and other matters has increased dramatically in the past several years. The financial crisis and the current political and public sentiment regarding financial institutions has resulted in a significant amount of adverse press coverage, as well as adverse statements or charges by regulators or other government officials. Press coverage and other public statements that assert some form of wrongdoing often result in some type of investigation by regulators, legislators and law enforcement officials or in lawsuits.
Responding to these investigations and lawsuits, regardless of the ultimate outcome of the proceeding, is time-consuming and expensive and can divert the time and effort of our senior management from our business. Penalties and fines sought by regulatory authorities have increased substantially over the last several years, and certain regulators have been more likely in recent years to commence enforcement actions or to advance or support legislation targeted at the financial services industry. Adverse publicity, governmental scrutiny and legal and enforcement proceedings can also have a negative impact on our reputation and on the morale and performance of our employees, which could adversely affect our businesses and results of operations.
Certain regulators, including the SEC, have announced policies that make it more likely that they will seek an admission of wrongdoing as part of any settlement of a matter brought by them against a regulated entity or individual, which could lead to increased exposure to civil litigation and could adversely affect our reputation and ability to do business in certain jurisdictions with so-called bad actor disqualification laws and could have other negative effects.
A failure in our operational systems or infrastructure, or those of third parties, as well as cyber attacks and human error, could impair our liquidity, disrupt our businesses, result in the disclosure of confidential information, damage our reputation and cause losses.
Our businesses are highly dependent on our ability to process and monitor, on a daily basis, a very large number of transactions, many of which are highly complex and occur at very high volumes and frequencies, across numerous and diverse markets in many currencies. These transactions, as well as the information technology services we provide to clients, often must adhere to client-specific guidelines, as well as legal and regulatory standards.
As our client base, and our geographical reach expands, and the volume, speed, frequency and complexity of transactions, especially electronic transactions (as well as the requirements to report such transactions on a real-time basis to clients, regulators and exchanges) increases, developing and maintaining our operational systems and infrastructure becomes more challenging, and the risk of systems or human error in connection with such transactions increases, as well as the potential consequences of such errors due to the speed and volume of transactions involved and the potential difficulty associated with discovering such errors quickly enough to limit the resulting consequences.
Our financial, accounting, data processing or other operational systems and facilities may fail to operate properly or become disabled as a result of events that are wholly or partially beyond our control, such as a spike in transaction volume, adversely affecting our ability to process these transactions or provide these services. We must continuously update these systems to support our operations and growth and to respond to changes in regulations and markets, and invest heavily in systemic controls and training to ensure that such transactions do not violate applicable rules and regulations or, due to errors in processing such transactions, adversely affect markets, our clients and counterparties or the firm.
Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K | 37 |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Systems enhancements and updates, as well as the requisite training, entail significant costs and create risks associated with implementing new systems and integrating them with existing ones.
In addition, we also face the risk of operational failure, termination or capacity constraints of any of the clearing agents, exchanges, clearing houses or other financial intermediaries we use to facilitate our securities and derivatives transactions, and as our interconnectivity with our clients grows, we increasingly face the risk of operational failure with respect to our clients systems.
In recent years, there has been significant consolidation among clearing agents, exchanges and clearing houses and an increasing number of derivative transactions are now or in the near future will be cleared on exchanges, which has increased our exposure to operational failure, termination or capacity constraints of the particular financial intermediaries that we use and could affect our ability to find adequate and cost-effective alternatives in the event of any such failure, termination or constraint. Industry consolidation, whether among market participants or financial intermediaries, increases the risk of operational failure as disparate complex systems need to be integrated, often on an accelerated basis.
Furthermore, the interconnectivity of multiple financial institutions with central agents, exchanges and clearing houses, and the increased centrality of these entities, increases the risk that an operational failure at one institution or entity may cause an industry-wide operational failure that could materially impact our ability to conduct business. Any such failure, termination or constraint could adversely affect our ability to effect transactions, service our clients, manage our exposure to risk or expand our businesses or result in financial loss or liability to our clients, impairment of our liquidity, disruption of our businesses, regulatory intervention or reputational damage.
Despite the resiliency plans and facilities we have in place, our ability to conduct business may be adversely impacted by a disruption in the infrastructure that supports our businesses and the communities in which we are located. This may include a disruption involving electrical, satellite, undersea cable or other communications, internet, transportation or other services facilities used by us or third parties with which we conduct business. These disruptions may occur as a result of events that affect only our buildings or systems or those of such third parties, or as a result of events with a broader impact globally, regionally or in the cities where those buildings or systems are located, including, but not limited, to natural disasters, war, civil unrest, economic or political developments, pandemics and weather events.
Nearly all of our employees in our primary locations, including the New York metropolitan area, London, Bengaluru, Hong Kong, Tokyo and Salt Lake City, work in close proximity to one another, in one or more buildings. Notwithstanding our efforts to maintain business continuity, given that our headquarters and the largest concentration of our employees are in the New York metropolitan area and our two principal office buildings in the New York area both are located on the waterfront of the Hudson River, depending on the intensity and longevity of the event, a catastrophic event impacting our New York metropolitan area offices, including a terrorist attack, extreme weather event or other hostile or catastrophic event, could very negatively affect our business. If a disruption occurs in one location and our employees in that location are unable to occupy our offices or communicate with or travel to other locations, our ability to service and interact with our clients may suffer, and we may not be able to successfully implement contingency plans that depend on communication or travel.
Our operations rely on the secure processing, storage and transmission of confidential and other information in our computer systems and networks. There have been several recent highly publicized cases involving financial services and consumer-based companies reporting the unauthorized disclosure of client or customer information, as well as cyber attacks involving the dissemination, theft and destruction of corporate information or other assets, as a result of failure to follow procedures by employees or contractors or as a result of actions by third-parties, including actions by foreign governments.
38 | Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
We are regularly the target of attempted cyber attacks, including denial-of-service attacks, and must continuously monitor and develop our systems to protect our technology infrastructure and data from misappropriation or corruption. In addition, due to our interconnectivity with third-party vendors, central agents, exchanges, clearing houses and other financial institutions, we could be adversely impacted if any of them is subject to a successful cyber attack or other information security event. Although we take protective measures and endeavor to modify them as circumstances warrant, our computer systems, software and networks may be vulnerable to unauthorized access, misuse, computer viruses or other malicious code and other events that could have a security impact. If one or more of such events occur, this potentially could jeopardize our or our clients or counterparties confidential and other information processed and stored in, and transmitted through, our computer systems and networks, or otherwise cause interruptions or malfunctions in our, our clients, our counterparties or third parties operations, which could impact their ability to transact with us or otherwise result in significant losses or reputational damage.
The increased use of mobile and cloud technologies can heighten these and other operational risks. We expect to expend significant additional resources on an ongoing basis to modify our protective measures and to investigate and remediate vulnerabilities or other exposures, and we may be subject to litigation and financial losses that are either not insured against or not fully covered through any insurance maintained by us.
We routinely transmit and receive personal, confidential and proprietary information by email and other electronic means. We have discussed and worked with clients, vendors, service providers, counterparties and other third parties to develop secure transmission capabilities and protect against cyber attacks, but we do not have, and may be unable to put in place, secure capabilities with all of our clients, vendors, service providers, counterparties and other third parties and we may not be able to ensure that these third parties have appropriate controls in place to protect the confidentiality of the information. An interception, misuse or mishandling of personal, confidential or proprietary information being sent to or received from a client, vendor, service provider, counterparty or other third party could result in legal liability, regulatory action and reputational harm.
Notwithstanding the proliferation of technology and technology-based risk and control systems, our businesses ultimately rely on human beings as our greatest resource, and from time-to-time, they make mistakes that are not always caught immediately by our technological processes or by our other procedures which are intended to prevent and detect such errors. These can include calculation errors, mistakes in addressing emails, errors in software development or implementation, or simple errors in judgment. We strive to eliminate such human errors through training, supervision, technology and by redundant processes and controls. Human errors, even if promptly discovered and remediated, can result in material losses and liabilities for the firm.
Substantial legal liability or significant regulatory action against us could have material adverse financial effects or cause us significant reputational harm, which in turn could seriously harm our business prospects.
We face significant legal risks in our businesses, and the volume of claims and amount of damages and penalties claimed in litigation and regulatory proceedings against financial institutions remain high. See Note 27 to the consolidated financial statements in Part II, Item 8 of the 2014 Form 10-K for a discussion of certain legal proceedings in which we are involved and Note 18 to the consolidated financial statements in Part II, Item 8 of the 2014 Form 10-K for information regarding certain mortgage-related contingencies. Our experience has been that legal claims by customers and clients increase in a market downturn and that employment-related claims increase following periods in which we have reduced our staff. Additionally, governmental entities are plaintiffs in certain of the legal proceedings in which we are involved, and we may face future actions or claims by the same or other governmental entities.
Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K | 39 |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Recently, significant settlements by several large financial institutions with governmental entities have been publicly announced. The trend of large settlements with governmental entities may adversely affect the outcomes for other financial institutions in similar actions, especially where governmental officials have announced that the large settlements will be used as the basis or a template for other settlements. The uncertain regulatory enforcement environment makes it difficult to estimate probable losses, which can lead to substantial disparities between legal reserves and subsequent actual settlements or penalties. Further, the SEC has announced a policy of seeking admissions of liability in certain settled cases, which could adversely impact the defense of private litigation or result in penalties or limitations in business under bad actor statutes in jurisdictions in which we operate.
The growth of electronic trading and the introduction of new trading technology may adversely affect our business and may increase competition.
Technology is fundamental to our business and our industry. The growth of electronic trading and the introduction of new technologies is changing our businesses and presenting us with new challenges. Securities, futures and options transactions are increasingly occurring electronically, both on our own systems and through other alternative trading systems, and it appears that the trend toward alternative trading systems will continue and probably accelerate. Some of these alternative trading systems compete with us, particularly our exchange-based market-making activities, and we may experience continued competitive pressures in these and other areas. In addition, the increased use by our clients of low-cost electronic trading systems and direct electronic access to trading markets could cause a reduction in commissions and spreads. As our clients increasingly use our systems to trade directly in the markets, we may incur liabilities as a result of their use of our order routing and execution infrastructure. We have invested significant resources into the development of electronic trading systems and expect to continue to do so, but there is no assurance that the revenues generated by these systems will yield an adequate return on our investment, particularly given the relatively lower commissions arising from electronic trades.
Our commodities activities, particularly our physical commodities activities, subject us to extensive regulation and involve certain potential risks, including environmental, reputational and other risks that may expose us to significant liabilities and costs.
As part of our commodities business, we purchase and sell certain physical commodities and arrange for their storage and transport. In our investing and lending businesses, we invest in entities that engage in the production, storage, transportation, marketing and trading of numerous commodities. The commodities involved in these activities and investments may include crude oil, oil products, natural gas, electric power, agricultural products, metals (base and precious), minerals (including unenriched uranium), emission credits, coal, freight, liquefied natural gas and related products and indices.
These activities subject us and/or the entities in which we invest to extensive and evolving federal, state and local energy, environmental, antitrust and other governmental laws and regulations worldwide, including environmental laws and regulations relating to, among others, air quality, water quality, waste management, transportation of hazardous substances, natural resources, site remediation and health and safety. Additionally, rising climate change concerns may lead to additional regulation that could increase the operating costs and profitability of our investments.
There may be substantial costs in complying with current or future laws and regulations relating to our commodities-related activities and investments. Compliance with these laws and regulations could require significant commitments of capital toward environmental monitoring, renovation of storage facilities or transport vessels, payment of emission fees and carbon or other taxes, and application for, and holding of, permits and licenses.
40 | Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Commodities involved in our intermediation activities and investments are also subject to the risk of unforeseen or catastrophic events, which are likely to be outside of our control, including those arising from the breakdown or failure of transport vessels, storage facilities or other equipment or processes or other mechanical malfunctions, fires, leaks, spills or release of hazardous substances, performance below expected levels of output or efficiency, terrorist attacks, extreme weather events or other natural disasters or other hostile or catastrophic events. In addition, we rely on third-party suppliers or service providers to perform their contractual obligations and any failure on their part, including the failure to obtain raw materials at reasonable prices or to safely transport or store commodities, could expose us to costs or losses. Also, while we seek to insure against potential risks, we may not be able to obtain insurance to cover some of these risks and the insurance that we have may be inadequate to cover our losses.
The occurrence of any of such events may prevent us from performing under our agreements with clients, may impair our operations or financial results and may result in litigation, regulatory action, negative publicity or other reputational harm.
We may also be required to divest or discontinue certain of these activities for regulatory or legal reasons. If that occurs, the firm may receive a value that is less than the then carrying value, as the firm may be unable to exit these activities in an orderly transaction.
In conducting our businesses around the world, we are subject to political, economic, legal, operational and other risks that are inherent in operating in many countries.
In conducting our businesses and maintaining and supporting our global operations, we are subject to risks of possible nationalization, expropriation, price controls, capital controls, exchange controls and other restrictive governmental actions, as well as the outbreak of hostilities or acts of terrorism. For example, there has recently been significant conflict between Russia and Ukraine, and sanctions have been imposed by the U.S. and EU on certain individuals and companies in Russia. In many countries, the laws and regulations applicable to the securities and financial services industries and many of the transactions in which we are involved are uncertain and evolving, and it may be difficult for us to determine the exact requirements of local laws in every market. Any determination by local regulators that we have not acted in compliance with the application of local laws in a particular market or our failure to develop effective working relationships with local regulators could have a significant and negative effect not only on our businesses in that market but also on our reputation generally. We are also subject to the enhanced risk that transactions we structure might not be legally enforceable in all cases.
Our businesses and operations are increasingly expanding into new regions throughout the world, including emerging and growth markets, and we expect this trend to continue. Various emerging and growth market countries have experienced severe economic and financial disruptions, including significant devaluations of their currencies, defaults or threatened defaults on sovereign debt, capital and currency exchange controls, and low or negative growth rates in their economies, as well as military activity, civil unrest or acts of terrorism. The possible effects of any of these conditions include an adverse impact on our businesses and increased volatility in financial markets generally.
Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K | 41 |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
While business and other practices throughout the world differ, our principal legal entities are subject in their operations worldwide to rules and regulations relating to corrupt and illegal payments, hiring practices and money laundering, as well as laws relating to doing business with certain individuals, groups and countries, such as the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, the USA PATRIOT Act and U.K. Bribery Act. While we have invested and continue to invest significant resources in training and in compliance monitoring, the geographical diversity of our operations, employees, clients and customers, as well as the vendors and other third parties that we deal with, greatly increases the risk that we may be found in violation of such rules or regulations and any such violation could subject us to significant penalties or adversely affect our reputation.
In addition, there have been a number of highly publicized cases around the world, involving actual or alleged fraud or other misconduct by employees in the financial services industry in recent years, and we run the risk that employee misconduct could occur. This misconduct has included and may include in the future the theft of proprietary information, including proprietary software. It is not always possible to deter or prevent employee misconduct and the precautions we take to prevent and detect this activity have not been and may not be effective in all cases.
We may incur losses as a result of unforeseen or catastrophic events, including the emergence of a pandemic, terrorist attacks, extreme weather events or other natural disasters.
The occurrence of unforeseen or catastrophic events, including the emergence of a pandemic, such as Ebola, or other widespread health emergency (or concerns over the possibility of such an emergency), terrorist attacks, extreme terrestrial or solar weather events or other natural disasters, could create economic and financial disruptions, and could lead to operational difficulties (including travel limitations) that could impair our ability to manage our businesses.
42 | Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Item 1B. Unresolved Staff Comments
There are no material unresolved written comments that were received from the SEC staff 180 days or more before the end of our fiscal year relating to our periodic or current reports under the Exchange Act.
Our principal executive offices are located at 200 West Street, New York, New York and comprise approximately 2.1 million gross square feet. The building is located on a parcel leased from Battery Park City Authority pursuant to a ground lease. Under the lease, Battery Park City Authority holds title to all improvements, including the office building, subject to Goldman Sachs right of exclusive possession and use until June 2069, the expiration date of the lease. Under the terms of the ground lease, we made a lump sum ground rent payment in June 2007 of $161 million for rent through the term of the lease.
We have offices at 30 Hudson Street in Jersey City, New Jersey, which we own and which include approximately 1.6 million gross square feet of office space.
We have additional offices and commercial space in the United States and elsewhere in the Americas, which together comprise approximately 2.5 million square feet of leased and owned space.
In Europe, the Middle East and Africa, we have offices that total approximately 1.5 million square feet of leased and owned space. Our European headquarters is located in London at Peterborough Court, pursuant to a lease expiring in 2026. In total, we have offices with approximately 1.1 million square feet in London, relating to various properties.
In Asia (including India), Australia and New Zealand, we have offices with approximately 1.9 million square feet. Our headquarters in this region are in Tokyo, at the Roppongi Hills Mori Tower, and in Hong Kong, at the Cheung Kong Center. In Japan, we currently have offices with approximately 220,000 square feet, the majority of which have leases that will expire in 2018. In Hong Kong, we currently have offices with approximately 315,000 square feet, the majority of which have leases that will expire in 2017.
In the preceding paragraphs, square footage figures are provided only for properties that are used in the operation of our businesses.
See Managements Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations Off-Balance-Sheet Arrangements and Contractual Obligations Contractual Obligations in Part II, Item 7 of the 2014 Form 10-K for a discussion of exit costs we may incur in the future to the extent we (i) reduce our space capacity or (ii) commit to, or occupy, new properties in the locations in which we operate and, consequently, dispose of existing space that had been held for potential growth.
We are involved in a number of judicial, regulatory and arbitration proceedings concerning matters arising in connection with the conduct of our businesses. Many of these proceedings are in early stages, and many of these cases seek an indeterminate amount of damages. However, we believe, based on currently available information, that the results of such proceedings, in the aggregate, will not have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, but may be material to our operating results for any particular period, depending, in part, upon the operating results for such period. Given the range of litigation and investigations presently under way, our litigation expenses can be expected to remain high. See Managements Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations Use of Estimates in Part II, Item 7 of the 2014 Form 10-K. See Note 27 to the consolidated financial statements in Part II, Item 8 of the 2014 Form 10-K for information about certain judicial, regulatory and legal proceedings.
Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures
Not applicable.
Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K | 43 |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Set forth below are the name, age, present title, principal occupation and certain biographical information for our executive officers. All of our executive officers have been appointed by and serve at the pleasure of our board of directors.
Lloyd C. Blankfein, 60
Mr. Blankfein has been our Chairman and Chief Executive Officer since June 2006, and a director since April 2003.
Alan M. Cohen, 64
Mr. Cohen has been an Executive Vice President of Goldman Sachs and our Global Head of Compliance since February 2004.
Gary D. Cohn, 54
Mr. Cohn has been our President and Chief Operating Officer (or Co-Chief Operating Officer) and a director since June 2006.
Edith W. Cooper, 53
Ms. Cooper has been an Executive Vice President of Goldman Sachs since April 2011 and our Global Head of Human Capital Management since March 2008. From 2002 to 2008, she served in various positions at the firm, including sales management within the Securities Division.
Gregory K. Palm, 66
Mr. Palm has been an Executive Vice President of Goldman Sachs since May 1999, and our General Counsel and head or co-head of the Legal Department since May 1992.
John F.W. Rogers, 58
Mr. Rogers has been an Executive Vice President of Goldman Sachs since April 2011 and Chief of Staff and Secretary to the Board of Directors of Goldman Sachs since December 2001.
Harvey M. Schwartz, 50
Mr. Schwartz has been an Executive Vice President of Goldman Sachs and our Chief Financial Officer since January 2013. From February 2008 to January 2013, Mr. Schwartz was global co-head of the Securities Division.
Mark Schwartz, 60
Mr. Schwartz has been a Vice Chairman of Goldman Sachs and Chairman of Goldman Sachs Asia Pacific since rejoining the firm in June 2012. From 2006 to June 2012, he was Chairman of MissionPoint Capital Partners, an investment firm he co-founded.
Michael S. Sherwood, 49
Mr. Sherwood has been a Vice Chairman of Goldman Sachs since February 2008 and co-chief executive officer of Goldman Sachs International since 2005. He assumed responsibility for coordinating the firms business and activities around Growth Markets in November 2013.
John S. Weinberg, 58
Mr. Weinberg has been a Vice Chairman of Goldman Sachs since June 2006. He currently focuses on client development and initiatives across our major divisions. He was a co-head of Goldman Sachs Investment Banking Division from December 2002 to December 2014.
44 | Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Item 5. Market for Registrants Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities
The principal market on which our common stock is traded is the NYSE. Information relating to the high and low sales prices per share of our common stock, as reported by the Consolidated Tape Association, for each full quarterly period during 2012, 2013 and 2014 is set forth under the heading Supplemental Financial Information Common Stock Price Range in Part II, Item 8 of the 2014 Form 10-K. As of February 6, 2015, there were 10,230 holders of record of our common stock.
During 2013 and 2014, dividends of $0.50 per common share were declared on January 15, 2013, April 15, 2013 and July 15, 2013, dividends of $0.55 per common share were declared on October 16, 2013, January 15, 2014, April 16, 2014 and July 14, 2014 and a dividend of $0.60 per common share was declared on October 15, 2014. The holders of our common stock share proportionately on a per share basis in all dividends and other distributions on common stock declared by the Board of Directors of Group Inc. (Board).
The declaration of dividends by Group Inc. is subject to the discretion of our Board. Our Board will take into account such matters as general business conditions, our financial results, capital requirements, contractual, legal and regulatory restrictions on the payment of dividends by us to our shareholders or by our subsidiaries to us, the effect on our debt ratings and such other factors as our Board may deem relevant. See Business Regulation in Part I, Item 1 of the 2014 Form 10-K for a discussion of potential regulatory limitations on our receipt of funds from our regulated subsidiaries and our payment of dividends to shareholders of Group Inc.
The table below sets forth the information with respect to purchases made by or on behalf of Group Inc. or any affiliated purchaser (as defined in Rule 10b-18(a)(3) under the Exchange Act), of our common stock during the fourth quarter of our year ended December 2014.
|
Total Number of Shares Purchased |
|
Average Price Paid Per Share |
|
Total Number of
Shares |
|
|
Maximum Number of Shares |
| |||||
Month #1 (October 1, 2014 to October 31, 2014) |
1,759,498 | $181.86 | 1,759,498 | 30,235,389 | ||||||||||
Month #2 (November 1, 2014 to November 30, 2014) |
2,728,586 | 189.98 | 2,728,586 | 27,506,803 | ||||||||||
Month #3 (December 1, 2014 to December 31, 2014) |
2,156,373 | 2 | 190.95 | 2,155,759 | 25,351,044 | |||||||||
Total | 6,644,457 | 6,643,843 |
1. | On March 21, 2000, we announced that our Board had approved a repurchase program, pursuant to which up to 15 million shares of our common stock may be repurchased. This repurchase program was increased by an aggregate of 430 million shares by resolutions of our Board adopted from June 2001 through April 2013. We use our share repurchase program to help maintain the appropriate level of common equity. The repurchase program is effected primarily through regular open-market purchases (which may include repurchase plans designed to comply with Rule 10b5-1), the amounts and timing of which are determined primarily by the firms current and projected capital position, but which may also be influenced by general market conditions and the prevailing price and trading volumes of our common stock. The repurchase program has no set expiration or termination date. Prior to repurchasing common stock, the firm must receive confirmation that the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System does not object to such capital actions. |
2. | Includes 614 shares remitted by employees to satisfy minimum statutory withholding taxes on equity-based awards that were delivered to employees during the period. |
Information relating to compensation plans under which our equity securities are authorized for issuance is presented in Part III, Item 12 of the 2014 Form 10-K.
Item 6. Selected Financial Data
The Selected Financial Data table is set forth under Part II, Item 8 of the 2014 Form 10-K.
Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K | 45 |
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46 | Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Managements Discussion and Analysis
The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (Group Inc.) is a leading global investment banking, securities and investment management firm that provides a wide range of financial services to a substantial and diversified client base that includes corporations, financial institutions, governments and high-net-worth individuals. Founded in 1869, the firm is headquartered in New York and maintains offices in all major financial centers around the world.
We report our activities in four business segments: Investment Banking, Institutional Client Services, Investing & Lending and Investment Management. See Results of Operations below for further information about our business segments.
When we use the terms Goldman Sachs, the firm, we, us and our, we mean Group Inc., a Delaware corporation, and its consolidated subsidiaries.
References to the 2014 Form 10-K are to our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2014. All references to the consolidated financial statements or Supplemental Financial Information are to Part II, Item 8 of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2014. All references to 2014, 2013 and 2012 refer to our years ended, or the dates, as the context requires, December 31, 2014, December 31, 2013 and December 31, 2012, respectively. Any reference to a future year refers to a year ending on December 31 of that year. Certain reclassifications have been made to previously reported amounts to conform to the current presentation.
In this discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations, we have included information that may constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are not historical facts, but instead represent only our beliefs regarding future events, many of which, by their nature, are inherently uncertain and outside our control. This information includes statements other than historical information or statements of current condition and may relate to our future plans and objectives and results, among other things, and may also include statements about the effect of changes to the capital and leverage rules applicable to banks and bank holding companies, the impact of the Dodd-Frank Act on our businesses and operations, and various legal proceedings or mortgage-related contingencies as set forth under Legal Proceedings and Certain Mortgage-Related Contingencies in Notes 27 and 18, respectively, to the consolidated financial statements, as well as statements about the results of our Dodd-Frank Act and firm stress tests, statements about the objectives and effectiveness of our business continuity plan, information security program, risk management and liquidity policies, statements about trends in or growth opportunities for our businesses, statements about our future status, activities or reporting under U.S. or non-U.S. banking and financial regulation, and statements about our investment banking transaction backlog.
By identifying these statements for you in this manner, we are alerting you to the possibility that our actual results and financial condition may differ, possibly materially, from the anticipated results and financial condition indicated in these forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause our actual results and financial condition to differ from those indicated in these forward-looking statements include, among others, those discussed below under Certain Risk Factors That May Affect Our Businesses as well as Risk Factors in Part I, Item 1A of the 2014 Form 10-K and Cautionary Statement Pursuant to the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 in Part I, Item 1 of the 2014 Form 10-K.
Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K | 47 |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Managements Discussion and Analysis
2014 versus 2013. The firm generated net earnings of $8.48 billion and diluted earnings per common share of $17.07 for 2014, an increase of 5% and 10%, respectively, compared with $8.04 billion and $15.46 per share for 2013. Return on average common shareholders equity (ROE) was 11.2% for 2014, compared with 11.0% for 2013. Book value per common share was $163.01 and tangible book value per common share 1 was $153.79 as of December 2014, both approximately 7% higher compared with the end of 2013.
Net revenues were $34.53 billion for 2014, essentially unchanged compared with 2013, as higher net revenues in both Investment Management and Investment Banking, reflecting strong performances in these businesses, were largely offset by slightly lower net revenues in both Institutional Client Services and Investing & Lending.
Operating expenses were $22.17 billion for 2014, essentially unchanged compared with 2013. Non-compensation expenses were slightly lower compared with the prior year, primarily reflecting lower net provisions for litigation and regulatory proceedings, while compensation and benefits expenses were essentially unchanged.
During 2014, as part of a firmwide initiative to reduce activities with lower returns, total assets were reduced by $55 billion to $856 billion as of December 2014, while pre-tax margin improved approximately 150 basis points to 35.8%.
We also maintained strong capital ratios and liquidity, while returning $6.52 billion of capital to shareholders during 2014. During the year, the firm repurchased 31.8 million shares of its common stock for a total cost of $5.47 billion and paid common dividends of $1.05 billion. Our Common Equity Tier 1 ratio 2 was 12.2% as of December 2014, under the Basel III Advanced approach reflecting the applicable transitional provisions. In addition, our global core liquid assets 3 were $183 billion as of December 2014.
2013 versus 2012. The firm generated net earnings of $8.04 billion and diluted earnings per common share of $15.46 for 2013, an increase of 8% and 9%, respectively, compared with $7.48 billion and $14.13 per share for 2012. ROE was 11.0% for 2013, compared with 10.7% for 2012. Book value per common share increased approximately 5% to $152.48 and tangible book value per common share 1 increased approximately 7% to $143.11 compared with the end of 2012.
Net revenues were $34.21 billion for 2013, essentially unchanged compared with 2012, as significantly higher net revenues in Investment Banking and higher net revenues in both Investing & Lending and Investment Management were offset by lower net revenues in Institutional Client Services.
Operating expenses were $22.47 billion for 2013, 2% lower than 2012, as both compensation and benefits expenses and non-compensation expenses decreased slightly. The decline in non-compensation expenses reflected the sale of a majority stake in our Americas reinsurance business and lower depreciation and amortization expenses, partially offset by higher net provisions for litigation and regulatory proceedings.
During 2013, the firm repurchased 39.3 million shares of its common stock for a total cost of $6.17 billion, while maintaining strong capital levels. In addition, our global core liquid assets 3 were $184 billion as of December 2013.
See Results of Operations Segment Operating Results below for information about net revenues and pre-tax earnings for each of our business segments.
Our businesses, by their nature, do not produce predictable earnings. Our results in any given period can be materially affected by conditions in global financial markets, economic conditions generally and other factors. For a further discussion of the factors that may affect our future operating results, see Certain Risk Factors That May Affect Our Businesses below, as well as Risk Factors in Part I, Item 1A of the 2014 Form 10-K.
1. | Tangible book value per common share is a non-GAAP measure and may not be comparable to similar non-GAAP measures used by other companies. See Balance Sheet and Funding Sources Balance Sheet Analysis and Metrics below for further information about our calculation of tangible book value per common share. |
2. | See Note 20 to the consolidated financial statements for further information about our capital ratios. |
3. | See Risk Management and Risk Factors Liquidity Risk Management for further information about our global core liquid assets. |
48 | Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Managements Discussion and Analysis
During 2014, real gross domestic product (GDP) growth appeared stable and subdued in most major economies, supported by solid private sector growth in the United States and the reduction of fiscal headwinds, particularly in the United States and the Euro area. Ongoing U.S. labor market improvements and robust U.S. consumer activity were notable trends in 2014. Monetary policy generally remained accommodative, helping most major advanced-economy equity markets to increase during the year, while longer-dated government bond yields generally declined. During the second half of 2014, the U.S. dollar strengthened and oil prices declined. Although macroeconomic conditions were fairly stable, U.S. equity market volatility increased towards the end of the year, alongside political uncertainty, particularly in Greece, Russia and the Middle East, as well as short-lived Ebola concerns. In investment banking, industry-wide underwriting activity remained strong in both equity and debt, and industry-wide completed mergers and acquisitions activity increased compared with 2013. Industry-wide announced mergers and acquisitions activity significantly increased compared with 2013. For a further discussion of how market conditions may affect our businesses, see Certain Risk Factors That May Affect Our Businesses below, as well as Risk Factors in Part I, Item 1A of the 2014 Form 10-K.
Global
During 2014, real GDP growth appeared to improve in advanced economies and slow in emerging markets. Developed market growth improvements were largest in the United Kingdom and Euro area, while Japans growth declined and the United States growth improvement was modest. In emerging markets, headwinds from slowing domestic demand offset improving current account balances and contributed to a general slowdown in growth. Unemployment rates in both the United States and United Kingdom declined in 2014 and at faster paces than in 2013. The Euro area unemployment rate declined in 2014, following an increase in 2013. The U.S. Federal Reserve ended its monthly asset purchase program in the fourth quarter of 2014, after tapering its purchases for several months. The European Central Bank (ECB) reduced its policy interest rate twice during the year, and along with the Bank of Japan (BOJ), announced further easing policies.
United States
In the United States, real GDP increased by 2.4% in 2014, compared with an increase of 2.2% in 2013. Consumer expenditures growth and business fixed investment growth both improved, while residential investment growth slowed. The pickup in consumer expenditures was primarily driven by growth in real disposable income, which contracted in 2013. Measures of consumer confidence improved, as the unemployment rate fell during the year. House prices, housing starts and house sales increased in 2014, but the pace of improvements, particularly for starts and sales, slowed compared with 2013. Measures of inflation were mostly stable during 2014. The U.S. Federal Reserve maintained its federal funds rate at a target range of zero to 0.25% during the year, ended its monthly program to purchase U.S. Treasury securities and mortgage-backed securities in the fourth quarter of 2014 and kept forward guidance broadly unchanged. The yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury note declined by 87 basis points during 2014 to 2.17%. In equity markets, the NASDAQ Composite Index, the S&P 500 Index and the Dow Jones Industrial Average increased by 13%, 11% and 8%, respectively, during 2014.
Europe
In the Euro area, real GDP increased by 0.9% in 2014, compared with a contraction of 0.4% in 2013. While an improvement from 2013, growth remained at a suppressed level. Fixed investment and consumer spending both grew modestly in 2014, after contracting in 2013, and measures of inflation remain subdued. The ECB cut the main refinancing operations and deposit rates by 20 basis points to 0.05% and (0.20)%, respectively, announced a purchase program for asset-backed securities and covered bonds in the fourth quarter of 2014, and discussed the possibility of a quantitative easing program targeting sovereign bonds. The Euro depreciated by 12% against the U.S. dollar. In the United Kingdom, real GDP increased by 2.6% in 2014, compared with an increase of 1.7% in 2013. The Bank of England maintained its official bank rate at 0.50%. The British pound depreciated by 6% against the U.S. dollar. Yields on 10-year government bonds in the region generally fell during the year. In equity markets, the DAX Index and the Euro Stoxx 50 Index increased by 3% and 1%, respectively, while the FTSE 100 Index and the CAC 40 Index decreased by 3% and 1%, respectively, during 2014.
Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K | 49 |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Managements Discussion and Analysis
Asia
In Japan, real GDP had no growth in 2014, a sharp slowdown compared with an increase of 1.6% in 2013. Real GDP contracted significantly during the second and third quarters of 2014, as consumer expenditures fell, in part resulting from a consumption tax hike in April. However, real GDP picked up again in the fourth quarter of 2014. Although measures of inflation increased in 2014, inflation remained below the BOJs 2% inflation target excluding the impact of the consumption tax hike. During the fourth quarter of 2014, the BOJ announced further quantitative and qualitative monetary easing and removed the 2-year timing target for achieving 2% price stability, making the timeframe open ended. During the year, the yield on 10-year Japanese government bonds declined, the U.S. dollar appreciated by 14% against the Japanese yen and, in equity markets, the Nikkei 225 Index increased by 7%.
In China, real GDP increased by 7.4% in 2014, compared with 7.7% in 2013. Measures of inflation remained moderate and the Peoples Bank of China cut its one-year lending rate by 40 basis points during the fourth quarter of 2014. The U.S. dollar appreciated by 2% against the Chinese yuan and, in equity markets, the Shanghai Composite Index increased by 53%, as regulatory changes influenced sentiment. In contrast, in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index increased by 1%.
In India, real GDP increased at a solid pace in both 2014 and 2013. The rate of wholesale inflation declined compared with 2013. The U.S. dollar appreciated by 2% against the Indian rupee and, in equity markets, the BSE Sensex Index increased by 30% during 2014.
Other Markets
In Brazil, estimated real GDP had no growth in 2014, compared with an increase of 2.5% in 2013, as private consumption growth decelerated and fixed investment spending contracted. The U.S. dollar appreciated by 12% against the Brazilian real and, in equity markets, the Bovespa Index decreased by 3%. In Russia, real GDP increased by 0.6% in 2014, compared with an increase of 1.3% in 2013. Tensions related to the political situation in Ukraine and Russia generated concern during the year. The U.S. dollar appreciated by 76% against the Russian ruble and, in equity markets, the MICEX Index decreased by 7% during 2014.
Fair Value
Fair Value Hierarchy. Financial instruments owned, at fair value and Financial instruments sold, but not yet purchased, at fair value (i.e., inventory), as well as certain other financial assets and financial liabilities, are reflected in our consolidated statements of financial condition at fair value (i.e., marked-to-market), with related gains or losses generally recognized in our consolidated statements of earnings. The use of fair value to measure financial instruments is fundamental to our risk management practices and is our most critical accounting policy.
The fair value of a financial instrument is the amount that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. We measure certain financial assets and financial liabilities as a portfolio (i.e., based on its net exposure to market and/or credit risks). In determining fair value, the hierarchy under U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (U.S. GAAP) gives (i) the highest priority to unadjusted quoted prices in active markets for identical, unrestricted assets or liabilities (level 1 inputs), (ii) the next priority to inputs other than level 1 inputs that are observable, either directly or indirectly (level 2 inputs), and (iii) the lowest priority to inputs that cannot be observed in market activity (level 3 inputs). Assets and liabilities are classified in their entirety based on the lowest level of input that is significant to their fair value measurement.
The fair values for substantially all of our financial assets and financial liabilities are based on observable prices and inputs and are classified in levels 1 and 2 of the fair value hierarchy. Certain level 2 and level 3 financial assets and financial liabilities may require appropriate valuation adjustments that a market participant would require to arrive at fair value for factors such as counterparty and the firms credit quality, funding risk, transfer restrictions, liquidity and bid/offer spreads. Valuation adjustments are generally based on market evidence.
50 | Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Managements Discussion and Analysis
Instruments categorized within level 3 of the fair value hierarchy are those which require one or more significant inputs that are not observable. As of December 2014 and December 2013, level 3 financial assets represented 4.9% and 4.4%, respectively, of our total assets. Absent evidence to the contrary, instruments classified within level 3 of the fair value hierarchy are initially valued at transaction price, which is considered to be the best initial estimate of fair value. Subsequent to the transaction date, we use other methodologies to determine fair value, which vary based on the type of instrument. Estimating the fair value of level 3 financial instruments requires judgments to be made. These judgments include:
| Determining the appropriate valuation methodology and/or model for each type of level 3 financial instrument; |
| Determining model inputs based on an evaluation of all relevant empirical market data, including prices evidenced by market transactions, interest rates, credit spreads, volatilities and correlations; and |
| Determining appropriate valuation adjustments, including those related to illiquidity or counterparty credit quality. |
Regardless of the methodology, valuation inputs and assumptions are only changed when corroborated by substantive evidence.
Controls Over Valuation of Financial Instruments. Market makers and investment professionals in our revenue-producing units are responsible for pricing our financial instruments. Our control infrastructure is independent of the revenue-producing units and is fundamental to ensuring that all of our financial instruments are appropriately valued at market-clearing levels. In the event that there is a difference of opinion in situations where estimating the fair value of financial instruments requires judgment (e.g., calibration to market comparables or trade comparison, as described below), the final valuation decision is made by senior managers in control and support functions that are independent of the revenue-producing units. This independent price verification is critical to ensuring that our financial instruments are properly valued.
Price Verification. All financial instruments at fair value in levels 1, 2 and 3 of the fair value hierarchy are subject to our independent price verification process. The objective of price verification is to have an informed and independent opinion with regard to the valuation of financial instruments under review. Instruments that have one or more significant inputs which cannot be corroborated by external market data are classified within level 3 of the fair value hierarchy. Price verification strategies utilized by our independent control and support functions include:
| Trade Comparison. Analysis of trade data (both internal and external where available) is used to determine the most relevant pricing inputs and valuations. |
| External Price Comparison. Valuations and prices are compared to pricing data obtained from third parties (e.g., broker or dealers, MarkIt, Bloomberg, IDC, TRACE). Data obtained from various sources is compared to ensure consistency and validity. When broker or dealer quotations or third-party pricing vendors are used for valuation or price verification, greater priority is generally given to executable quotations. |
| Calibration to Market Comparables. Market-based transactions are used to corroborate the valuation of positions with similar characteristics, risks and components. |
| Relative Value Analyses. Market-based transactions are analyzed to determine the similarity, measured in terms of risk, liquidity and return, of one instrument relative to another or, for a given instrument, of one maturity relative to another. |
| Collateral Analyses. Margin calls on derivatives are analyzed to determine implied values which are used to corroborate our valuations. |
| Execution of Trades. Where appropriate, trading desks are instructed to execute trades in order to provide evidence of market-clearing levels. |
| Backtesting. Valuations are corroborated by comparison to values realized upon sales. |
See Notes 5 through 8 to the consolidated financial statements for further information about fair value measurements.
Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K | 51 |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Managements Discussion and Analysis
Review of Net Revenues. Independent control and support functions ensure adherence to our pricing policy through a combination of daily procedures, including the explanation and attribution of net revenues based on the underlying factors. Through this process we independently validate net revenues, identify and resolve potential fair value or trade booking issues on a timely basis and seek to ensure that risks are being properly categorized and quantified.
Review of Valuation Models. The firms independent model validation group, consisting of quantitative professionals who are separate from model developers, performs an independent model approval process. This process incorporates a review of a diverse set of model and trade parameters across a broad range of values (including extreme and/or improbable conditions) in order to critically evaluate:
| The models suitability for valuation and risk management of a particular instrument type; |
| The models accuracy in reflecting the characteristics of the related product and its significant risks; |
| The suitability of the calculation techniques incorporated in the model; |
| The models consistency with models for similar products; and |
| The models sensitivity to input parameters and assumptions. |
New or changed models are reviewed and approved prior to being put into use. Models are evaluated and re-approved annually to assess the impact of any changes in the product or market and any market developments in pricing theories.
Level 3 Financial Assets at Fair Value. Total level 3 financial assets were $42.01 billion and $40.01 billion as of December 2014 and December 2013, respectively.
See Notes 5 through 8 to the consolidated financial statements for further information about level 3 financial assets, including changes in level 3 financial assets and related fair value measurements.
Goodwill and Identifiable Intangible Assets
Goodwill. Goodwill is the cost of acquired companies in excess of the fair value of net assets, including identifiable intangible assets, at the acquisition date. Goodwill is assessed annually in the fourth quarter for impairment, or more frequently if events occur or circumstances change that indicate an impairment may exist, by first assessing qualitative factors to determine whether it is more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying amount. If the results of the qualitative assessment are not conclusive, a quantitative goodwill test would be performed by comparing the estimated fair value of each reporting unit with its estimated net book value.
During the fourth quarter of 2014, we assessed goodwill for impairment. The qualitative assessment required management to make judgments and to evaluate several factors, which included, but were not limited to, macroeconomic conditions, industry and market considerations, cost factors, overall financial performance, entity-specific events, events affecting reporting units and sustained changes in our stock price. Based on our evaluation of these factors, we determined that it was more likely than not that the fair value of each of the reporting units exceeded its respective carrying amount, and therefore, we determined that goodwill was not impaired and that a quantitative goodwill impairment test was not required.
If we experience a prolonged or severe period of weakness in the business environment or financial markets, our goodwill could be impaired in the future. In addition, significant changes to critical inputs of the quantitative goodwill impairment test (e.g., cost of equity) could cause the estimated fair value of our reporting units to decline, which could result in an impairment of goodwill in the future.
See Note 13 to the consolidated financial statements for further information about our goodwill.
52 | Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Managements Discussion and Analysis
Identifiable Intangible Assets. We amortize our identifiable intangible assets over their estimated useful lives using the straight-line method or based on economic usage for certain commodities-related intangibles. Identifiable intangible assets are tested for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances suggest that an assets or asset groups carrying value may not be fully recoverable. See Note 13 to the consolidated financial statements for the carrying value and estimated remaining useful lives of our identifiable intangible assets by major asset class.
A prolonged or severe period of market weakness, or significant changes in regulation could adversely impact our businesses and impair the value of our identifiable intangible assets. In addition, certain events could indicate a potential impairment of our identifiable intangible assets, including weaker business performance resulting in a decrease in our customer base and decreases in revenues from commodities-related transportation rights, customer contracts and relationships. Management judgment is required to evaluate whether indications of potential impairment have occurred, and to test intangible assets for impairment if required.
An impairment, generally calculated as the difference between the estimated fair value and the carrying value of an asset or asset group, is recognized if the total of the estimated undiscounted cash flows relating to the asset or asset group is less than the corresponding carrying value.
See Note 13 to the consolidated financial statements for information about impairments of our identifiable intangible assets.
Recent Accounting Developments
See Note 3 to the consolidated financial statements for information about Recent Accounting Developments.
The use of generally accepted accounting principles requires management to make certain estimates and assumptions. In addition to the estimates we make in connection with fair value measurements, and the accounting for goodwill and identifiable intangible assets, the use of estimates and assumptions is also important in determining provisions for losses that may arise from litigation, regulatory proceedings and tax audits.
We estimate and provide for potential losses that may arise out of litigation and regulatory proceedings to the extent that such losses are probable and can be reasonably estimated. In addition, we estimate the upper end of the range of reasonably possible aggregate loss in excess of the related reserves for litigation proceedings where the firm believes the risk of loss is more than slight. See Notes 18 and 27 to the consolidated financial statements for information about certain judicial, regulatory and legal proceedings.
Significant judgment is required in making these estimates and our final liabilities may ultimately be materially different. Our total estimated liability in respect of litigation and regulatory proceedings is determined on a case-by-case basis and represents an estimate of probable losses after considering, among other factors, the progress of each case or proceeding, our experience and the experience of others in similar cases or proceedings, and the opinions and views of legal counsel.
In accounting for income taxes, we recognize tax positions in the financial statements only when it is more likely than not that the position will be sustained on examination by the relevant taxing authority based on the technical merits of the position. See Note 24 to the consolidated financial statements for further information about accounting for income taxes.
Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K | 53 |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Managements Discussion and Analysis
The composition of our net revenues has varied over time as financial markets and the scope of our operations have changed. The composition of net revenues can also vary over the shorter term due to fluctuations in U.S. and global economic and market conditions. See Certain Risk Factors That May Affect Our Businesses below and Risk Factors in Part I, Item 1A of the 2014 Form 10-K for a further discussion of the impact of economic and market conditions on our results of operations.
Financial Overview
The table below presents an overview of our financial results.
$ in millions, except per share amounts |
Year Ended December | |||||||||||
2014 | 2013 | 2012 | ||||||||||
Net revenues |
$34,528 | $34,206 | $34,163 | |||||||||
Pre-tax earnings |
12,357 | 11,737 | 11,207 | |||||||||
Net earnings |
8,477 | 8,040 | 7,475 | |||||||||
Net earnings applicable to common shareholders |
8,077 | 7,726 | 7,292 | |||||||||
Diluted earnings per common share |
17.07 | 15.46 | 14.13 | |||||||||
Return on average common shareholders equity 1 |
11.2% | 11.0% | 10.7% |
1. | ROE is computed by dividing net earnings applicable to common shareholders by average monthly common shareholders equity. The table below presents our average common shareholders equity. |
Average for the Year Ended December |
||||||||||||
$ in millions | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | |||||||||
Total shareholders equity |
$80,839 | $77,353 | $72,530 | |||||||||
Preferred stock |
(8,585 | ) | (6,892 | ) | (4,392 | ) | ||||||
Common shareholders equity |
$72,254 | $70,461 | $68,138 |
The table below presents selected financial ratios.
Year Ended December | ||||||||||||
2014 | 2013 | 2012 | ||||||||||
Net earnings to average assets |
0.9% | 0.9% | 0.8% | |||||||||
Return on average total shareholders equity 1 |
10.5% | 10.4% | 10.3% | |||||||||
Total average equity to average assets |
9.0% | 8.2% | 7.7% | |||||||||
Dividend payout ratio 2 |
13.2% | 13.3% | 12.5% |
1. | Return on average total shareholders equity is computed by dividing net earnings by average monthly total shareholders equity. |
2. | Dividend payout ratio is computed by dividing dividends declared per common share by diluted earnings per common share. |
Net Revenues
The table below presents our net revenues by line item on the consolidated statements of earnings.
Year Ended December | ||||||||||||
$ in millions | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | |||||||||
Investment banking |
$ 6,464 | $ 6,004 | $ 4,941 | |||||||||
Investment management |
5,748 | 5,194 | 4,968 | |||||||||
Commissions and fees |
3,316 | 3,255 | 3,161 | |||||||||
Market making |
8,365 | 9,368 | 11,348 | |||||||||
Other principal transactions |
6,588 | 6,993 | 5,865 | |||||||||
Total non-interest revenues |
30,481 | 30,814 | 30,283 | |||||||||
Interest income |
9,604 | 10,060 | 11,381 | |||||||||
Interest expense |
5,557 | 6,668 | 7,501 | |||||||||
Net interest income |
4,047 | 3,392 | 3,880 | |||||||||
Total net revenues |
$34,528 | $34,206 | $34,163 |
In the table above:
| Investment banking is comprised of revenues (excluding net interest) from financial advisory and underwriting assignments, as well as derivative transactions directly related to these assignments. These activities are included in our Investment Banking segment. |
| Investment management is comprised of revenues (excluding net interest) from providing investment management services to a diverse set of clients, as well as wealth advisory services and certain transaction services to high-net-worth individuals and families. These activities are included in our Investment Management segment. |
| Commissions and fees is comprised of revenues from executing and clearing client transactions on major stock, options and futures exchanges worldwide, as well as over-the-counter (OTC) transactions. These activities are included in our Institutional Client Services and Investment Management segments. |
| Market making is comprised of revenues (excluding net interest) from client execution activities related to making markets in interest rate products, credit products, mortgages, currencies, commodities and equity products. These activities are included in our Institutional Client Services segment. |
| Other principal transactions is comprised of revenues (excluding net interest) from our investing activities and the origination of loans to provide financing to clients. In addition, Other principal transactions includes revenues related to our consolidated investments. These activities are included in our Investing & Lending segment. |
54 | Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Managements Discussion and Analysis
2014 versus 2013
Net revenues on the consolidated statements of earnings were $34.53 billion for 2014, essentially unchanged compared with 2013, reflecting higher net interest income, investment management revenues and investment banking revenues, as well as slightly higher commissions and fees, largely offset by lower market-making revenues and other principal transactions revenues.
During 2014, the operating environment was favorable for investment banking activities, as industry-wide underwriting activity was strong and industry-wide mergers and acquisitions activity increased. Improved asset prices resulted in appreciation in the value of client assets in investment management. In addition, other principal transactions were impacted by favorable company-specific events and strong corporate performance. However, the operating environment remained challenging for market-making activities as economic uncertainty and low volatility levels contributed to generally low levels of activity, particularly in fixed income products. If macroeconomic concerns continue over the long term, and client activity levels in investment banking broadly decline or market-making activity levels remain low, or if asset prices were to decline, net revenues would likely be negatively impacted. See Segment Operating Results below for further information about material trends and uncertainties that may impact our results of operations.
Non-Interest Revenues. Investment banking revenues on the consolidated statements of earnings were $6.46 billion for 2014, 8% higher than 2013, due to significantly higher revenues in financial advisory, reflecting an increase in industry-wide completed mergers and acquisitions, primarily in the United States. Revenues in underwriting were essentially unchanged compared with a strong 2013, as industry-wide activity levels remained high. Revenues in debt underwriting were slightly lower compared with 2013, reflecting lower revenues from commercial mortgage-related activity, while revenues in equity underwriting were slightly higher, principally from initial public offerings.
Investment management revenues on the consolidated statements of earnings were $5.75 billion for 2014, 11% higher than 2013, reflecting higher management and other fees, primarily due to higher average assets under supervision, as well as higher incentive fees and transaction revenues.
Commissions and fees on the consolidated statements of earnings were $3.32 billion for 2014, 2% higher than 2013, due to higher commissions and fees in both Europe and the United States, reflecting generally higher client activity, consistent with increases in listed cash equity market volumes in these regions.
Market-making revenues on the consolidated statements of earnings were $8.37 billion for 2014, 11% lower than 2013. Results for 2014 included a gain of $289 million ($270 million of which was recorded at extinguishment in the third quarter) related to the extinguishment of certain of our junior subordinated debt. Excluding this gain and a gain of $211 million on the sale of a majority stake in our European insurance business in 2013, the decrease in market-making revenues compared with 2013 reflected significantly lower revenues in both credit products and equity derivatives, lower revenues in mortgages and the sale of our Americas reinsurance business in 2013. These decreases were partially offset by significantly higher revenues in commodities, as well as higher revenues in equity cash products, currencies and interest rate products.
Other principal transactions revenues on the consolidated statements of earnings were $6.59 billion for 2014, 6% lower than 2013. Net gains from investments in equity securities were slightly lower due to a significant decrease in net gains from investments in public equities, as movements in global equity prices during 2014 were less favorable compared with 2013, partially offset by an increase in net gains from investments in private equities, primarily driven by company-specific events. Net gains from debt securities and loans were slightly higher than 2013, primarily due to sales of certain investments during 2014. Revenues related to our consolidated investments were significantly lower compared with 2013, reflecting a decrease in operating revenues from commodities-related consolidated investments.
Net Interest Income. Net interest income on the consolidated statements of earnings was $4.05 billion for 2014, 19% higher than 2013. The increase compared with 2013 was primarily due to lower interest expense resulting from a reduction in our total liabilities, lower costs of long-term funding due to a decline in interest rates and the impact of rebates in the securities services business, partially offset by lower interest income due to a reduction in our total assets. See Supplemental Financial Information Statistical Disclosures Distribution of Assets, Liabilities and Shareholders Equity for further information about our sources of net interest income.
2013 versus 2012
Net revenues on the consolidated statements of earnings were $34.21 billion for 2013, essentially unchanged compared with 2012. 2013 included significantly higher investment banking revenues, as well as higher other principal transactions revenues and investment management revenues. In addition, commissions and fees were slightly higher compared with 2012. These increases were offset by lower market-making revenues and lower net interest income compared with 2012.
Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K | 55 |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Managements Discussion and Analysis
During 2013, a significant increase in global equity prices contributed to improved industry-wide equity underwriting activity in investment banking, appreciation in the value of client assets in investment management and net gains from investments in public equities in other principal transactions. Other principal transactions were also impacted by favorable company-specific events and strong corporate performance, and industry-wide debt underwriting activity in investment banking remained solid, as interest rates remained low. However, macroeconomic concerns continued to weigh on industry-wide mergers and acquisitions activity in investment banking, and contributed to a challenging operating environment for market-making activities, resulting in fluctuations in activity levels during 2013. See Segment Operating Results below for further information about material trends and uncertainties that may impact our results of operations.
Non-Interest Revenues. Investment banking revenues on the consolidated statements of earnings were $6.00 billion for 2013, 22% higher than 2012, reflecting significantly higher revenues in underwriting, due to strong revenues in both equity and debt underwriting. Revenues in equity underwriting were significantly higher compared with 2012, reflecting an increase in client activity, particularly in initial public offerings. Revenues in debt underwriting were significantly higher compared with 2012, principally due to leveraged finance activity. Revenues in financial advisory were essentially unchanged compared with 2012.
Investment management revenues on the consolidated statements of earnings were $5.19 billion for 2013, 5% higher than 2012, reflecting higher management and other fees, primarily due to higher average assets under supervision.
Commissions and fees on the consolidated statements of earnings were $3.26 billion for 2013, slightly higher than 2012, primarily reflecting higher commissions and fees in Asia and Europe. During 2013, our average daily volumes were higher in Asia and Europe and lower in the United States compared with 2012, consistent with listed cash equity market volumes.
Market-making revenues on the consolidated statements of earnings were $9.37 billion for 2013, 17% lower than 2012. The decrease compared with 2012 was primarily due to significantly lower revenues in equity products, mortgages and interest rate products, as well as lower revenues in currencies. The decrease in equity products was due to the sale of our Americas reinsurance business in 2013, the sale of our hedge fund administration business in 2012 (2012 included a gain on sale of $494 million) and lower revenues in derivatives, partially offset by significantly higher revenues in cash products compared with 2012. Revenues in commodities were higher, while revenues in credit products were essentially unchanged compared with 2012. In December 2013, we completed the sale of a majority stake in our European insurance business and recognized a gain of $211 million.
Other principal transactions revenues on the consolidated statements of earnings were $6.99 billion for 2013, 19% higher than 2012, reflecting a significant increase in net gains from investments in equity securities, driven by company-specific events and stronger corporate performance, as well as significantly higher global equity prices. In addition, net gains from debt securities and loans were slightly higher, while revenues related to our consolidated investments were lower compared with 2012.
Net Interest Income. Net interest income on the consolidated statements of earnings was $3.39 billion for 2013, 13% lower than 2012. The decrease compared with 2012 was primarily due to lower average yields on financial instruments owned, at fair value, partially offset by lower interest expense on financial instruments sold, but not yet purchased, at fair value and collateralized financings. See Supplemental Financial Information Statistical Disclosures Distribution of Assets, Liabilities and Shareholders Equity for further information about our sources of net interest income.
56 | Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Managements Discussion and Analysis
Operating Expenses
Our operating expenses are primarily influenced by compensation, headcount and levels of business activity. In addition, see Use of Estimates for expenses that may arise from litigation and regulatory proceedings. Compensation and benefits includes salaries, discretionary compensation, amortization of equity awards and other items such as benefits. Discretionary compensation is significantly impacted by, among other factors, the level of net revenues, overall financial performance, prevailing labor markets, business mix, the structure of our share-based compensation programs and the external environment.
The table below presents our operating expenses and total staff (which includes employees, consultants and temporary staff).
Year Ended December | ||||||||||||
$ in millions | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | |||||||||
Compensation and benefits |
$12,691 | $12,613 | $12,944 | |||||||||
Brokerage, clearing, exchange and distribution fees |
2,501 | 2,341 | 2,208 | |||||||||
Market development |
549 | 541 | 509 | |||||||||
Communications and technology |
779 | 776 | 782 | |||||||||
Depreciation and amortization |
1,337 | 1,322 | 1,738 | |||||||||
Occupancy |
827 | 839 | 875 | |||||||||
Professional fees |
902 | 930 | 867 | |||||||||
Insurance reserves 1 |
| 176 | 598 | |||||||||
Other expenses |
2,585 | 2,931 | 2,435 | |||||||||
Total non-compensation expenses |
9,480 | 9,856 | 10,012 | |||||||||
Total operating expenses |
$22,171 | $22,469 | $22,956 | |||||||||
Total staff at period-end |
34,000 | 32,900 | 32,400 |
1. | Consists of changes in reserves related to our Americas reinsurance business, including interest credited to policyholder account balances, and expenses related to property catastrophe reinsurance claims. In April 2013, we completed the sale of a majority stake in our Americas reinsurance business and no longer consolidate this business. |
2014 versus 2013. Operating expenses on the consolidated statements of earnings were $22.17 billion for 2014, essentially unchanged compared with 2013. Compensation and benefits expenses on the consolidated statements of earnings were $12.69 billion for 2014, essentially unchanged compared with 2013. The ratio of compensation and benefits to net revenues for 2014 was 36.8% compared with 36.9% for 2013. Total staff increased 3% during 2014.
Non-compensation expenses on the consolidated statements of earnings were $9.48 billion for 2014, 4% lower than 2013. The decrease compared with 2013 included a decrease in other expenses, due to lower net provisions for litigation and regulatory proceedings and lower operating expenses related to consolidated investments, as well as a decline in insurance reserves, reflecting the sale of our Americas reinsurance business in 2013. These decreases were partially offset by an increase in brokerage, clearing, exchange and distribution fees. Net provisions for litigation and regulatory proceedings for 2014 were $754 million compared with $962 million for 2013 (both primarily comprised of net provisions for mortgage-related matters). 2014 included a charitable contribution of $137 million to Goldman Sachs Gives, our donor-advised fund. Compensation was reduced to fund this charitable contribution to Goldman Sachs Gives. The firm asks its participating managing directors to make recommendations regarding potential charitable recipients for this contribution.
2013 versus 2012. Operating expenses on the consolidated statements of earnings were $22.47 billion for 2013, 2% lower than 2012. Compensation and benefits expenses on the consolidated statements of earnings were $12.61 billion for 2013, 3% lower compared with $12.94 billion for 2012. The ratio of compensation and benefits to net revenues for 2013 was 36.9% compared with 37.9% for 2012. Total staff increased 2% during 2013.
Non-compensation expenses on the consolidated statements of earnings were $9.86 billion for 2013, 2% lower than 2012. The decrease compared with 2012 included a decline in insurance reserves, reflecting the sale of our Americas reinsurance business, and a decrease in depreciation and amortization expenses, primarily reflecting lower impairment charges and lower operating expenses related to consolidated investments. These decreases were partially offset by an increase in other expenses, due to higher net provisions for litigation and regulatory proceedings, and higher brokerage, clearing, exchange and distribution fees. Net provisions for litigation and regulatory proceedings for 2013 were $962 million (primarily comprised of net provisions for mortgage-related matters) compared with $448 million for 2012 (including a settlement with the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Federal Reserve Board) regarding the independent foreclosure review). 2013 included a charitable contribution of $155 million to Goldman Sachs Gives, our donor-advised fund. Compensation was reduced to fund this charitable contribution to Goldman Sachs Gives. The firm asks its participating managing directors to make recommendations regarding potential charitable recipients for this contribution.
Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K | 57 |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Managements Discussion and Analysis
Provision for Taxes
The effective income tax rate for 2014 was 31.4%, essentially unchanged compared with 31.5% for 2013.
The effective income tax rate for 2013 was 31.5%, down from 33.3% for 2012. The decrease from 33.3% to 31.5% was primarily due to a determination that certain non-U.S. earnings will be permanently reinvested abroad.
In December 2014, the rules related to the deferral of U.S. tax on certain non-repatriated active financing income were extended retroactively to January 1, 2014 through December 31, 2014. The expiration of these rules effective December 31, 2014 is not expected to have a material impact on our effective tax rate for 2015.
In March 2014, New York State enacted executive budget legislation for the 2014-2015 fiscal year which changes the taxation of corporations doing business in the state. This change did not have a material impact on our effective tax rate for 2014, and we do not expect it will have a material impact on our effective tax rate for 2015.
Segment Operating Results
The table below presents the net revenues, operating expenses and pre-tax earnings of our segments.
Year Ended December | ||||||||||||
$ in millions | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | |||||||||
Investment Banking |
||||||||||||
Net revenues |
$ 6,464 | $ 6,004 | $ 4,926 | |||||||||
Operating expenses |
3,688 | 3,479 | 3,333 | |||||||||
Pre-tax earnings |
$ 2,776 | $ 2,525 | $ 1,593 | |||||||||
Institutional Client Services |
||||||||||||
Net revenues |
$15,197 | $15,721 | $18,124 | |||||||||
Operating expenses |
10,880 | 11,792 | 12,490 | |||||||||
Pre-tax earnings |
$ 4,317 | $ 3,929 | $ 5,634 | |||||||||
Investing & Lending |
||||||||||||
Net revenues |
$ 6,825 | $ 7,018 | $ 5,891 | |||||||||
Operating expenses |
2,819 | 2,686 | 2,668 | |||||||||
Pre-tax earnings |
$ 4,006 | $ 4,332 | $ 3,223 | |||||||||
Investment Management |
||||||||||||
Net revenues |
$ 6,042 | $ 5,463 | $ 5,222 | |||||||||
Operating expenses |
4,647 | 4,357 | 4,296 | |||||||||
Pre-tax earnings |
$ 1,395 | $ 1,106 | $ 926 | |||||||||
Total net revenues |
$34,528 | $34,206 | $34,163 | |||||||||
Total operating expenses 1 |
22,171 | 22,469 | 22,956 | |||||||||
Total pre-tax earnings |
$12,357 | $11,737 | $11,207 |
1. | Includes charitable contributions that have not been allocated to our segments of $137 million for 2014, $155 million for 2013 and $169 million for 2012. Operating expenses related to real estate-related exit costs, previously not allocated to our segments, have now been allocated. This allocation reflects the change in the manner in which management views the performance of our segments. Reclassifications have been made to previously reported segment amounts to conform to the current presentation. |
Net revenues in our segments include allocations of interest income and interest expense to specific securities, commodities and other positions in relation to the cash generated by, or funding requirements of, such underlying positions. See Note 25 to the consolidated financial statements for further information about our business segments.
The cost drivers of Goldman Sachs taken as a whole compensation, headcount and levels of business activity are broadly similar in each of our business segments. Compensation and benefits expenses within our segments reflect, among other factors, the overall performance of Goldman Sachs as well as the performance of individual businesses. Consequently, pre-tax margins in one segment of our business may be significantly affected by the performance of our other business segments. A discussion of segment operating results follows.
58 | Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Managements Discussion and Analysis
Investment Banking
Our Investment Banking segment is comprised of:
Financial Advisory. Includes strategic advisory assignments with respect to mergers and acquisitions, divestitures, corporate defense activities, restructurings, spin-offs, risk management and derivative transactions directly related to these client advisory assignments.
Underwriting. Includes public offerings and private placements, including local and cross-border transactions, of a wide range of securities, loans and other financial instruments, and derivative transactions directly related to these client underwriting activities.
The table below presents the operating results of our Investment Banking segment.
Year Ended December | ||||||||||||
$ in millions | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | |||||||||
Financial Advisory |
$2,474 | $1,978 | $1,975 | |||||||||
Equity underwriting |
1,750 | 1,659 | 987 | |||||||||
Debt underwriting |
2,240 | 2,367 | 1,964 | |||||||||
Total Underwriting |
3,990 | 4,026 | 2,951 | |||||||||
Total net revenues |
6,464 | 6,004 | 4,926 | |||||||||
Operating expenses |
3,688 | 3,479 | 3,333 | |||||||||
Pre-tax earnings |
$2,776 | $2,525 | $1,593 |
The table below presents our financial advisory and underwriting transaction volumes. 1
Year Ended December | ||||||||||||
$ in billions | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | |||||||||
Announced mergers and acquisitions |
$1,002 | $ 620 | $ 745 | |||||||||
Completed mergers and acquisitions |
659 | 632 | 575 | |||||||||
Equity and equity-related offerings 2 |
78 | 91 | 58 | |||||||||
Debt offerings 3 |
268 | 280 | 243 |
1. | Source: Thomson Reuters. Announced and completed mergers and acquisitions volumes are based on full credit to each of the advisors in a transaction. Equity and equity-related offerings and debt offerings are based on full credit for single book managers and equal credit for joint book managers. Transaction volumes may not be indicative of net revenues in a given period. In addition, transaction volumes for prior periods may vary from amounts previously reported due to the subsequent withdrawal or a change in the value of a transaction. |
2. | Includes Rule 144A and public common stock offerings, convertible offerings and rights offerings. |
3. | Includes non-convertible preferred stock, mortgage-backed securities, asset-backed securities and taxable municipal debt. Includes publicly registered and Rule 144A issues. Excludes leveraged loans. |
2014 versus 2013. Net revenues in Investment Banking were $6.46 billion for 2014, 8% higher than 2013.
Net revenues in Financial Advisory were $2.47 billion, 25% higher than 2013, reflecting an increase in industry-wide completed mergers and acquisitions, primarily in the United States. Net revenues in Underwriting were $3.99 billion, essentially unchanged compared with a strong 2013, as industry-wide activity levels remained high. Net revenues in debt underwriting were slightly lower compared with 2013, reflecting lower net revenues from commercial mortgage-related activity, while net revenues in equity underwriting were slightly higher, principally from initial public offerings.
During 2014, Investment Banking operated in an environment generally characterized by strong industry-wide underwriting activity in both equity and debt, and an increase in industry-wide completed mergers and acquisitions activity compared with 2013. Industry-wide announced mergers and acquisitions activity significantly increased compared with 2013. In the future, if market conditions become less favorable, and client activity levels broadly decline, net revenues in Investment Banking would likely be negatively impacted.
During 2014, our investment banking transaction backlog increased significantly due to a significant increase in estimated net revenues from potential advisory transactions. Estimated net revenues from potential underwriting transactions were lower compared with the end of 2013, as a significant decrease in estimated net revenues from potential equity underwriting transactions, particularly in initial public offerings, was partially offset by an increase in estimated net revenues from potential debt underwriting transactions, reflecting increases across most products.
Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K | 59 |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Managements Discussion and Analysis
Our investment banking transaction backlog represents an estimate of our future net revenues from investment banking transactions where we believe that future revenue realization is more likely than not. We believe changes in our investment banking transaction backlog may be a useful indicator of client activity levels which, over the long term, impact our net revenues. However, the time frame for completion and corresponding revenue recognition of transactions in our backlog varies based on the nature of the assignment, as certain transactions may remain in our backlog for longer periods of time and others may enter and leave within the same reporting period. In addition, our transaction backlog is subject to certain limitations, such as assumptions about the likelihood that individual client transactions will occur in the future. Transactions may be cancelled or modified, and transactions not included in the estimate may also occur.
Operating expenses were $3.69 billion for 2014, 6% higher than 2013, primarily due to increased compensation and benefits expenses, reflecting higher net revenues. Pre-tax earnings were $2.78 billion in 2014, 10% higher than 2013.
2013 versus 2012. Net revenues in Investment Banking were $6.00 billion for 2013, 22% higher than 2012.
Net revenues in Financial Advisory were $1.98 billion, essentially unchanged compared with 2012. Net revenues in Underwriting were $4.03 billion, 36% higher than 2012, due to strong net revenues in both equity and debt underwriting. Net revenues in equity underwriting were significantly higher compared with 2012, reflecting an increase in client activity, particularly in initial public offerings. Net revenues in debt underwriting were significantly higher compared with 2012, principally due to leveraged finance activity.
During 2013, Investment Banking operated in an environment generally characterized by improved industry-wide equity underwriting activity, particularly in initial public offerings, as global equity prices significantly increased during the year. In addition, industry-wide debt underwriting activity remained solid, and included significantly higher leveraged finance activity, as interest rates remained low. However, ongoing macroeconomic concerns continued to weigh on investment banking activity as industry-wide mergers and acquisitions activity declined compared with 2012.
During 2013, our investment banking transaction backlog increased significantly due to significantly higher estimated net revenues from both potential advisory transactions and potential underwriting transactions. The increase in underwriting reflects significantly higher estimated net revenues from potential equity underwriting transactions, primarily in initial public offerings, and higher estimated net revenues from potential debt underwriting transactions, principally from leveraged finance activity.
Operating expenses were $3.48 billion for 2013, 4% higher than 2012, due to increased compensation and benefits expenses, primarily resulting from higher net revenues. Pre-tax earnings were $2.53 billion in 2013, 59% higher than 2012.
60 | Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Managements Discussion and Analysis
Institutional Client Services
Our Institutional Client Services segment is comprised of:
Fixed Income, Currency and Commodities Client Execution. Includes client execution activities related to making markets in interest rate products, credit products, mortgages, currencies and commodities.
| Interest Rate Products. Government bonds, money market instruments such as commercial paper, treasury bills, repurchase agreements and other highly liquid securities and instruments, as well as interest rate swaps, options and other derivatives. |
| Credit Products. Investment-grade corporate securities, high-yield securities, credit derivatives, bank and bridge loans, municipal securities, emerging market and distressed debt, and trade claims. |
| Mortgages. Commercial mortgage-related securities, loans and derivatives, residential mortgage-related securities, loans and derivatives (including U.S. government agency-issued collateralized mortgage obligations, other prime, subprime and Alt-A securities and loans), and other asset-backed securities, loans and derivatives. |
| Currencies. Most currencies, including growth-market currencies. |
| Commodities. Crude oil and petroleum products, natural gas, base, precious and other metals, electricity, coal, agricultural and other commodity products. |
Equities. Includes client execution activities related to making markets in equity products and commissions and fees from executing and clearing institutional client transactions on major stock, options and futures exchanges worldwide, as well as OTC transactions. Equities also includes our securities services business, which provides financing, securities lending and other prime brokerage services to institutional clients, including hedge funds, mutual funds, pension funds and foundations, and generates revenues primarily in the form of interest rate spreads or fees.
The table below presents the operating results of our Institutional Client Services segment.
Year Ended December | ||||||||||||
$ in millions | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | |||||||||
Fixed Income, Currency and |
$ 8,461 | $ 8,651 | $ 9,914 | |||||||||
Equities client execution 1 |
2,079 | 2,594 | 3,171 | |||||||||
Commissions and fees |
3,153 | 3,103 | 3,053 | |||||||||
Securities services |
1,504 | 1,373 | 1,986 | |||||||||
Total Equities |
6,736 | 7,070 | 8,210 | |||||||||
Total net revenues |
15,197 | 15,721 | 18,124 | |||||||||
Operating expenses |
10,880 | 11,792 | 12,490 | |||||||||
Pre-tax earnings |
$ 4,317 | $ 3,929 | $ 5,634 |
1. | Net revenues related to the Americas reinsurance business were $317 million for 2013 and $1.08 billion for 2012. In April 2013, we completed the sale of a majority stake in our Americas reinsurance business and no longer consolidate this business. |
Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K | 61 |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Managements Discussion and Analysis
2014 versus 2013. Net revenues in Institutional Client Services were $15.20 billion for 2014, 3% lower than 2013. Results for 2014 included a gain of $289 million ($270 million of which was recorded at extinguishment in the third quarter) related to the extinguishment of certain of our junior subordinated debt, of which $168 million was included in Fixed Income, Currency and Commodities Client Execution and $121 million in Equities ($30 million and $91 million included in equities client execution and securities services, respectively).
Net revenues in Fixed Income, Currency and Commodities Client Execution were $8.46 billion for 2014, 2% lower than 2013. Excluding the gain related to the extinguishment of debt in 2014 and a gain of $211 million on the sale of a majority stake in our European insurance business in 2013, net revenues in Fixed Income, Currency and Commodities Client Execution were slightly lower compared with 2013. This decline reflected significantly lower net revenues in credit products and slightly lower net revenues in both interest rate products and mortgages. The decrease in credit products primarily reflected difficult market-making conditions, particularly during the second half of 2014, and generally low levels of activity. These results were largely offset by significantly higher net revenues in commodities and higher net revenues in currencies. The increase in commodities reflected more favorable market-making conditions in certain energy products, primarily during the first quarter of 2014. The increase in currencies reflected a stronger performance towards the end of the year, as activity levels improved and volatility was higher.
Net revenues in Equities were $6.74 billion for 2014, 5% lower than 2013. Excluding the gain related to the extinguishment of debt in 2014 and net revenues of $317 million related to the sale of a majority stake in our Americas reinsurance business in 2013, net revenues in Equities were slightly lower compared with 2013. This decline reflected lower net revenues in derivatives, partially offset by slightly higher commissions and fees and slightly higher net revenues in securities services. The increase in securities services net revenues reflected the impact of higher average customer balances. The increase in commissions and fees was due to higher commissions and fees in both Europe and the United States, reflecting generally higher client activity, consistent with increases in listed cash equity market volumes in these regions.
The net gain attributable to the impact of changes in our own credit spreads on borrowings for which the fair value option was elected was $144 million ($108 million and $36 million related to Fixed Income, Currency and Commodities Client Execution and equities client execution, respectively) for 2014, compared with a net loss of $296 million ($220 million and $76 million related to Fixed Income, Currency and Commodities Client Execution and equities client execution, respectively) for 2013.
During 2014, Institutional Client Services continued to operate in a challenging environment, as economic uncertainty contributed to subdued risk appetite for our clients and generally low levels of activity, particularly in credit products, interest rate products and mortgages. In addition, volatility levels remained low, although volatility increased in certain businesses towards the end of the year. Debt markets were also impacted by the widening of high-yield credit spreads and the decline in oil prices during the second half of the year, which contributed to low liquidity, particularly in credit. Equity markets, however, generally increased during the year. If macroeconomic concerns continue over the long term and activity levels remain low, net revenues in Fixed Income, Currency and Commodities Client Execution and Equities would likely continue to be negatively impacted.
Operating expenses were $10.88 billion for 2014, 8% lower than 2013, due to decreased compensation and benefits expenses, reflecting lower net revenues, lower net provisions for litigation and regulatory proceedings, and lower expenses as a result of the sale of a majority stake in our Americas reinsurance business. Pre-tax earnings were $4.32 billion in 2014, 10% higher than 2013.
62 | Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Managements Discussion and Analysis
2013 versus 2012. Net revenues in Institutional Client Services were $15.72 billion for 2013, 13% lower than 2012.
Net revenues in Fixed Income, Currency and Commodities Client Execution were $8.65 billion for 2013, 13% lower than 2012, reflecting significantly lower net revenues in interest rate products compared with a solid 2012, and significantly lower net revenues in mortgages compared with a strong 2012. The decrease in interest rate products and mortgages primarily reflected the impact of a more challenging environment and lower activity levels compared with 2012. In addition, net revenues in currencies were slightly lower, while net revenues in credit products and commodities were essentially unchanged compared with 2012. In December 2013, we completed the sale of a majority stake in our European insurance business and recognized a gain of $211 million.
Net revenues in Equities were $7.07 billion for 2013, 14% lower compared with 2012, due to the sale of our Americas reinsurance business 1 in 2013 and the sale of our hedge fund administration business in 2012. Net revenues in equities client execution (excluding net revenues from our Americas reinsurance business) were higher compared with 2012, including significantly higher net revenues in cash products, partially offset by significantly lower net revenues in derivatives. Commissions and fees were slightly higher compared with 2012, reflecting higher commissions and fees in Asia and Europe, partially offset by lower commissions and fees in the United States. Our average daily volumes during 2013 were higher in Asia and Europe and lower in the United States compared with 2012, consistent with listed cash equity market volumes. Securities services net revenues were significantly lower compared with 2012, primarily due to the sale of our hedge fund administration business in 2012 (2012 included a gain on sale of $494 million). During 2013, Equities operated in an environment characterized by a significant increase in global equity prices, particularly in Japan and the U.S., and generally lower volatility levels.
The net loss attributable to the impact of changes in our own credit spreads on borrowings for which the fair value option was elected was $296 million ($220 million and $76 million related to Fixed Income, Currency and Commodities Client Execution and equities client execution, respectively) for 2013, compared with a net loss of $714 million ($433 million and $281 million related to Fixed Income, Currency and Commodities Client Execution and equities client execution, respectively) for 2012.
During 2013, Institutional Client Services operated in a challenging environment that required continual reassessment of the outlook for the global economy, as uncertainty about when the U.S. Federal Reserve would begin tapering its asset purchase program, as well as constant global political risk and uncertainty, were interspersed with improvements in the U.S. economy over the course of the year. As a result, our clients risk appetite and activity levels fluctuated during 2013. Compared with 2012, activity levels were generally lower, global equity prices significantly increased and credit spreads tightened.
Operating expenses were $11.79 billion for 2013, 6% lower than 2012, due to decreased compensation and benefits expenses, primarily resulting from lower net revenues, and lower expenses as a result of the sale of a majority stake in our Americas reinsurance business in April 2013. These decreases were partially offset by increased net provisions for litigation and regulatory proceedings, primarily comprised of net provisions for mortgage-related matters, and higher brokerage, clearing, exchange and distribution fees. Pre-tax earnings were $3.93 billion in 2013, 30% lower than 2012.
1. | Net revenues related to the Americas reinsurance business were $317 million for 2013 and $1.08 billion for 2012. In April 2013, we completed the sale of a majority stake in our Americas reinsurance business and no longer consolidate this business. |
Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K | 63 |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Managements Discussion and Analysis
Investing & Lending
Investing & Lending includes our investing activities and the origination of loans to provide financing to clients. These investments and loans are typically longer-term in nature. We make investments, some of which are consolidated, directly and indirectly through funds that we manage, in debt securities and loans, public and private equity securities, and real estate entities.
The table below presents the operating results of our Investing & Lending segment.
Year Ended December | ||||||||||||
$ in millions | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | |||||||||
Equity securities |
$3,813 | $3,930 | $2,800 | |||||||||
Debt securities and loans |
2,165 | 1,947 | 1,850 | |||||||||
Other 1 |
847 | 1,141 | 1,241 | |||||||||
Total net revenues |
6,825 | 7,018 | 5,891 | |||||||||
Operating expenses |
2,819 | 2,686 | 2,668 | |||||||||
Pre-tax earnings |
$4,006 | $4,332 | $3,223 |
1. | Includes net revenues of $325 million for 2014, $329 million for 2013 and $362 million for 2012 related to Metro International Trade Services LLC. We completed the sale of this consolidated investment in December 2014. |
2014 versus 2013. Net revenues in Investing & Lending were $6.83 billion for 2014, 3% lower than 2013. Net gains from investments in equity securities were slightly lower due to a significant decrease in net gains from investments in public equities, as movements in global equity prices during 2014 were less favorable compared with 2013, partially offset by an increase in net gains from investments in private equities, primarily driven by company-specific events. Net revenues from debt securities and loans were higher than 2013, reflecting a significant increase in net interest income, primarily driven by increased lending, and a slight increase in net gains, primarily due to sales of certain investments during 2014. Other net revenues, related to our consolidated investments, were significantly lower compared with 2013, reflecting a decrease in operating revenues from commodities-related consolidated investments.
During 2014, net revenues in Investing & Lending generally reflected favorable company-specific events, including initial public offerings and financings, and strong corporate performance, as well as net gains from sales of certain investments. However, concerns about the outlook for the global economy and uncertainty over the impact of financial regulatory reform continue to be meaningful considerations for the global marketplace. If equity markets decline or credit spreads widen, net revenues in Investing & Lending would likely be negatively impacted.
Operating expenses were $2.82 billion for 2014, 5% higher than 2013, reflecting higher compensation and benefits expenses, partially offset by lower expenses related to consolidated investments. Pre-tax earnings were $4.01 billion in 2014, 8% lower than 2013.
2013 versus 2012. Net revenues in Investing & Lending were $7.02 billion for 2013, 19% higher than 2012, reflecting a significant increase in net gains from investments in equity securities, driven by company-specific events and stronger corporate performance, as well as significantly higher global equity prices. In addition, net gains and net interest income from debt securities and loans were slightly higher, while other net revenues, related to our consolidated investments, were lower compared with 2012.
During 2013, net revenues in Investing & Lending generally reflected favorable company-specific events and strong corporate performance, as well as the impact of significantly higher global equity prices and tighter corporate credit spreads.
Operating expenses were $2.69 billion for 2013, essentially unchanged compared with 2012. Operating expenses during 2013 included lower impairment charges and lower operating expenses related to consolidated investments, partially offset by increased compensation and benefits expenses due to higher net revenues compared with 2012. Pre-tax earnings were $4.33 billion in 2013, 34% higher than 2012.
64 | Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Managements Discussion and Analysis
Investment Management
Investment Management provides investment management services and offers investment products (primarily through separately managed accounts and commingled vehicles, such as mutual funds and private investment funds) across all major asset classes to a diverse set of institutional and individual clients. Investment Management also offers wealth advisory services, including portfolio management and financial counseling, and brokerage and other transaction services to high-net-worth individuals and families.
Assets under supervision include assets under management and other client assets. Assets under management include client assets where we earn a fee for managing assets on a discretionary basis. This includes net assets in our mutual funds, hedge funds, credit funds and private equity funds (including real estate funds), and separately managed accounts for institutional and individual investors. Other client assets include client assets invested with third-party managers, bank deposits and advisory relationships where we earn a fee for advisory and other services, but do not have investment discretion. Assets under supervision do not include the self-directed brokerage assets of our clients. Long-term assets under supervision represent assets under supervision excluding liquidity products. Liquidity products represent money markets and bank deposit assets.
Assets under supervision typically generate fees as a percentage of net asset value, which vary by asset class and are affected by investment performance as well as asset inflows and redemptions. Asset classes such as alternative investment and equity assets typically generate higher fees relative to fixed income and liquidity product assets. The average effective management fee (which excludes non-asset-based fees) we earned on our assets under supervision was 40 basis points for both 2014 and 2013, and 39 basis points for 2012.
In certain circumstances, we are also entitled to receive incentive fees based on a percentage of a funds or a separately managed accounts return, or when the return exceeds a specified benchmark or other performance targets. Incentive fees are recognized only when all material contingencies are resolved.
The table below presents the operating results of our Investment Management segment.
Year Ended December | ||||||||||||
$ in millions | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | |||||||||
Management and other fees |
$4,800 | $4,386 | $4,105 | |||||||||
Incentive fees |
776 | 662 | 701 | |||||||||
Transaction revenues |
466 | 415 | 416 | |||||||||
Total net revenues |
6,042 | 5,463 | 5,222 | |||||||||
Operating expenses |
4,647 | 4,357 | 4,296 | |||||||||
Pre-tax earnings |
$1,395 | $1,106 | $ 926 |
The tables below present our period-end assets under supervision (AUS) by asset class and by distribution channel.
As of December | ||||||||||||
$ in billions | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | |||||||||
Assets under management |
$1,027 | $ 919 | $ 854 | |||||||||
Other client assets |
151 | 123 | 111 | |||||||||
Total AUS |
$1,178 | $1,042 | $ 965 | |||||||||
Asset Class |
||||||||||||
Alternative investments 1 |
$ 143 | $ 142 | $ 151 | |||||||||
Equity |
236 | 208 | 153 | |||||||||
Fixed income |
516 | 446 | 411 | |||||||||
Long-term AUS |
895 | 796 | 715 | |||||||||
Liquidity products |
283 | 246 | 250 | |||||||||
Total AUS |
$1,178 | $1,042 | $ 965 | |||||||||
Distribution Channel |
||||||||||||
Directly distributed: |
||||||||||||
Institutional |
$ 412 | $ 363 | $ 343 | |||||||||
High-net-worth individuals |
363 | 330 | 294 | |||||||||
Third-party distributed: |
||||||||||||
Institutional, high-net-worth individuals and retail |
403 | 349 | 328 | |||||||||
Total AUS |
$1,178 | $1,042 | $ 965 |
1. | Primarily includes hedge funds, credit funds, private equity, real estate, currencies, commodities and asset allocation strategies. |
Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K | 65 |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Managements Discussion and Analysis
The table below presents a summary of the changes in our assets under supervision.
Year Ended December | ||||||||||||
$ in billions | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | |||||||||
Balance, beginning of year |
$1,042 | $ 965 | $895 | |||||||||
Net inflows/(outflows) |
||||||||||||
Alternative investments |
1 | (13 | ) | 1 | ||||||||
Equity |
15 | 13 | (17 | ) | ||||||||
Fixed income |
58 | 41 | 34 | |||||||||
Long-term AUS net inflows/(outflows) |
74 | 41 | 2 | 18 | 3 | |||||||
Liquidity products |
37 | (4 | ) | 3 | ||||||||
Total AUS net inflows/(outflows) |
111 | 1 | 37 | 21 | ||||||||
Net market appreciation/(depreciation) |
25 | 40 | 49 | |||||||||
Balance, end of year |
$1,178 | $1,042 | $965 |
1. | Net inflows in long-term assets under supervision include $19 billion of fixed income asset inflows in connection with our acquisition of Deutsche Asset & Wealth Managements stable value business. Net inflows in liquidity products include $6 billion of inflows in connection with our acquisition of RBS Asset Managements money market funds. |
2. | Fixed income flows include $10 billion in assets managed by the firm related to our Americas reinsurance business, in which a majority stake was sold in April 2013, that were previously excluded from assets under supervision as they were assets of a consolidated subsidiary. |
3. | Includes $34 billion of fixed income asset inflows in connection with our acquisition of Dwight Asset Management Company LLC and $5 billion of fixed income and equity asset outflows related to our liquidation of Goldman Sachs Asset Management Korea Co., Ltd. |
The table below presents our average monthly assets under supervision by asset class.
Average for the Year Ended December |
||||||||||||
$ in billions | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | |||||||||
Alternative investments |
$ 145 | $ 145 | $149 | |||||||||
Equity |
225 | 180 | 153 | |||||||||
Fixed income |
499 | 425 | 384 | |||||||||
Long-term AUS |
869 | 750 | 686 | |||||||||
Liquidity products |
248 | 235 | 238 | |||||||||
Total AUS |
$1,117 | $ 985 | $924 |
2014 versus 2013. Net revenues in Investment Management were $6.04 billion for 2014, 11% higher than 2013, reflecting higher management and other fees, primarily due to higher average assets under supervision, as well as higher incentive fees and transaction revenues. During the year, total assets under supervision increased $136 billion to $1.18 trillion. Long-term assets under supervision increased $99 billion, including net inflows of $74 billion (including $19 billion of fixed income asset inflows in connection with our acquisition of Deutsche Asset & Wealth Managements stable value business) and net market appreciation of $25 billion, both primarily in fixed income and equity assets. In addition, liquidity products increased $37 billion (including $6 billion of inflows in connection with our acquisition of RBS Asset Managements money market funds).
During 2014, Investment Management operated in an environment generally characterized by improved asset prices, primarily in equity and fixed income assets, resulting in appreciation in the value of client assets. In addition, the mix of average assets under supervision shifted slightly from liquidity products to long-term assets under supervision, due to growth in fixed income and equity assets, compared with 2013. In the future, if asset prices were to decline, or investors favor asset classes that typically generate lower fees or investors withdraw their assets, net revenues in Investment Management would likely be negatively impacted. In addition, concerns about the global economic outlook could result in downward pressure on assets under supervision.
Operating expenses were $4.65 billion for 2014, 7% higher than 2013, primarily due to increased compensation and benefits expenses, reflecting higher net revenues, and higher fund distribution fees. Pre-tax earnings were $1.40 billion in 2014, 26% higher than 2013.
2013 versus 2012. Net revenues in Investment Management were $5.46 billion for 2013, 5% higher than 2012, reflecting higher management and other fees, primarily due to higher average assets under supervision. During 2013, total assets under supervision increased $77 billion to $1.04 trillion. Long-term assets under supervision increased $81 billion, including net inflows of $41 billion (including $10 billion of fixed income asset inflows managed by the firm related to our Americas reinsurance business, in which a majority stake was sold in April 2013, that were previously excluded from assets under supervision as they were assets of a consolidated subsidiary), reflecting inflows in fixed income and equity assets, partially offset by outflows in alternative investment assets. Net market appreciation of $40 billion during 2013 was primarily in equity assets. Liquidity products decreased $4 billion.
During 2013, Investment Management operated in an environment generally characterized by improved asset prices, particularly in equities, resulting in appreciation in the value of client assets. In addition, the mix of average assets under supervision shifted slightly compared with 2012 from liquidity products to long-term assets under supervision, primarily due to growth in equity and fixed income assets.
Operating expenses were $4.36 billion for 2013, up slightly compared to 2012, due to increased compensation and benefits expenses, primarily resulting from higher net revenues. Pre-tax earnings were $1.11 billion in 2013, 19% higher than 2012.
Geographic Data
See Note 25 to the consolidated financial statements for a summary of our total net revenues, pre-tax earnings and net earnings by geographic region.
66 | Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Managements Discussion and Analysis
Balance Sheet and Funding Sources
Balance Sheet Management
One of our most important risk management disciplines is our ability to manage the size and composition of our balance sheet. While our asset base changes due to client activity, market fluctuations and business opportunities, the size and composition of our balance sheet reflect (i) our overall risk tolerance, (ii) our ability to access stable funding sources and (iii) the amount of equity capital we hold. See Equity Capital Management and Regulatory Capital Equity Capital Management for information about our equity capital management process.
Although our balance sheet fluctuates on a day-to-day basis, our total assets at quarterly and year-end dates are generally not materially different from those occurring within our reporting periods.
In order to ensure appropriate risk management, we seek to maintain a liquid balance sheet and have processes in place to dynamically manage our assets and liabilities which include (i) quarterly planning, (ii) business-specific limits, (iii) monitoring of key metrics and (iv) scenario analyses.
Quarterly Planning. We prepare a quarterly balance sheet plan that combines our projected total assets and composition of assets with our expected funding sources for the upcoming quarter. The objectives of this quarterly planning process are:
| To develop our near-term balance sheet projections, taking into account the general state of the financial markets and expected business activity levels, as well as current regulatory requirements; |
| To determine the target amount, tenor and type of funding to raise, based on our projected assets and forecasted maturities; and |
| To allow business risk managers and managers from our independent control and support functions to objectively evaluate balance sheet limit requests from business managers in the context of the firms overall balance sheet constraints, including the firms liability profile and equity capital levels, and key metrics. Limits are typically set at levels that will be periodically exceeded, rather than at levels which reflect our maximum risk appetite. |
To prepare our quarterly balance sheet plan, business risk managers and managers from our independent control and support functions meet with business managers to review current and prior period metrics and discuss expectations for the upcoming quarter. The specific metrics reviewed include asset and liability size and composition, aged inventory, limit utilization, risk and performance measures, and capital usage.
Our consolidated quarterly plan, including our balance sheet plans by business, funding projections, and projected key metrics, is reviewed by the Firmwide Finance Committee. See Overview and Structure of Risk Management for an overview of our risk management structure.
Business-Specific Limits. The Firmwide Finance Committee sets asset and liability limits for each business and aged inventory limits for certain financial instruments as a disincentive to hold inventory over longer periods of time. These limits are set at levels which are close to actual operating levels in order to ensure prompt escalation and discussion among business managers and managers in our independent control and support functions on a routine basis. The Firmwide Finance Committee reviews and approves balance sheet limits on a quarterly basis and may also approve changes in limits on an ad hoc basis in response to changing business needs or market conditions. Requests for changes in limits are evaluated after giving consideration to their impact on key firm metrics. Compliance with limits is monitored on a daily basis by business risk managers, as well as managers in our independent control and support functions.
Monitoring of Key Metrics. We monitor key balance sheet metrics daily both by business and on a consolidated basis, including asset and liability size and composition, aged inventory, limit utilization, risk measures and capital usage. We allocate assets to businesses and review and analyze movements resulting from new business activity as well as market fluctuations.
Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K | 67 |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Managements Discussion and Analysis
Scenario Analyses. We conduct scenario analyses including as part of the Comprehensive Capital Analysis and Review (CCAR) and Dodd-Frank Act Stress Tests (DFAST) as well as our resolution and recovery planning. See Equity Capital Management and Regulatory Capital Equity Capital Management below for further information. These scenarios cover short-term and long-term time horizons using various macroeconomic and firm-specific assumptions, based on a range of economic scenarios. We use these analyses to assist us in developing our longer-term balance sheet management strategy, including the level and composition of assets, funding and equity capital. Additionally, these analyses help us develop approaches for maintaining appropriate funding, liquidity and capital across a variety of situations, including a severely stressed environment.
Balance Sheet Allocation
In addition to preparing our consolidated statements of financial condition in accordance with U.S. GAAP, we prepare a balance sheet that generally allocates assets to our businesses, which is a non-GAAP presentation and may not be comparable to similar non-GAAP presentations used by other companies. We believe that presenting our assets on this basis is meaningful because it is consistent with the way management views and manages risks associated with the firms assets and better enables investors to assess the liquidity of the firms assets. The table below presents our balance sheet allocation.
As of December | ||||||||
$ in millions | 2014 | 2013 | ||||||
Global Core Liquid Assets (GCLA) |
$182,947 | $184,070 | ||||||
Other cash |
7,805 | 5,793 | ||||||
GCLA and cash |
190,752 | 189,863 | ||||||
Secured client financing |
210,641 | 263,386 | ||||||
Inventory |
230,667 | 255,534 | ||||||
Secured financing agreements |
74,767 | 79,635 | ||||||
Receivables |
47,317 | 39,557 | ||||||
Institutional Client Services |
352,751 | 374,726 | ||||||
Public equity |
4,041 | 4,308 | ||||||
Private equity |
17,979 | 16,236 | ||||||
Debt 1 |
24,768 | 23,274 | ||||||
Loans receivable 2 |
28,938 | 14,895 | ||||||
Other |
3,771 | 2,310 | ||||||
Investing & Lending |
79,497 | 61,023 | ||||||
Total inventory and related assets |
432,248 | 435,749 | ||||||
Other assets |
22,599 | 22,509 | ||||||
Total assets |
$856,240 | $911,507 |
1. | Includes $18.24 billion and $15.76 billion as of December 2014 and December 2013, respectively, of direct loans primarily extended to corporate and private wealth management clients that are accounted for at fair value. |
2. | See Note 9 to the consolidated financial statements for further information about loans receivable. |
Below is a description of the captions in the table above.
| Global Core Liquid Assets and Cash. We maintain substantial liquidity to meet a broad range of potential cash outflows and collateral needs in the event of a stressed environment. See Liquidity Risk Management below for details on the composition and sizing of our Global Core Liquid Assets (GCLA), previously Global Core Excess (GCE). In addition to our GCLA, we maintain other operating cash balances, primarily for use in specific currencies, entities, or jurisdictions where we do not have immediate access to parent company liquidity. |
| Secured Client Financing. We provide collateralized financing for client positions, including margin loans secured by client collateral, securities borrowed, and resale agreements primarily collateralized by government obligations. As a result of client activities, we are required to segregate cash and securities to satisfy regulatory requirements. Our secured client financing arrangements, which are generally short-term, are accounted for at fair value or at amounts that approximate fair value, and include daily margin requirements to mitigate counterparty credit risk. |
| Institutional Client Services. In Institutional Client Services, we maintain inventory positions to facilitate market-making in fixed income, equity, currency and commodity products. Additionally, as part of market-making activities, we enter into resale or securities borrowing arrangements to obtain securities which we can use to cover transactions in which we or our clients have sold securities that have not yet been purchased. The receivables in Institutional Client Services primarily relate to securities transactions. |
| Investing & Lending. In Investing & Lending, we make investments and originate loans to provide financing to clients. These investments and loans are typically longer-term in nature. We make investments, directly and indirectly through funds that we manage, in debt securities, loans, public and private equity securities, real estate entities and other investments. |
| Other Assets. Other assets are generally less liquid, non-financial assets, including property, leasehold improvements and equipment, goodwill and identifiable intangible assets, income tax-related receivables, equity-method investments, assets classified as held for sale and miscellaneous receivables. |
68 | Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Managements Discussion and Analysis
The tables below present the reconciliation of this balance sheet allocation to our U.S. GAAP balance sheet. In the tables below, total assets for Institutional Client Services and Investing & Lending represent inventory and related assets. These amounts differ from total assets by business segment disclosed in Note 25 to the consolidated financial
statements because total assets disclosed in Note 25 include allocations of our GCLA and cash, secured client financing and other assets. See Balance Sheet Analysis and Metrics below for explanations on the changes in our balance sheet from December 2013 to December 2014.
As of December 2014 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
$ in millions | |
GCLA and Cash |
1 |
|
Secured Client Financing |
|
|
Institutional Client Services |
|
|
Investing & Lending |
|
|
Other Assets |
|
|
Total Assets |
| ||||||
Cash and cash equivalents |
$ 57,600 | $ | $ | $ | $ | $ 57,600 | ||||||||||||||||||
Cash and securities segregated for regulatory and other purposes |
| 51,716 | | | | 51,716 | ||||||||||||||||||
Securities purchased under agreements to resell and federal funds sold |
66,928 | 34,506 | 24,940 | 1,564 | | 127,938 | ||||||||||||||||||
Securities borrowed |
32,311 | 78,584 | 49,827 | | | 160,722 | ||||||||||||||||||
Receivables from brokers, dealers and clearing organizations |
| 8,908 | 21,656 | 107 | | 30,671 | ||||||||||||||||||
Receivables from customers and counterparties |
| 36,927 | 25,661 | 1,220 | | 63,808 | ||||||||||||||||||
Loans receivable |
| | | 28,938 | | 28,938 | ||||||||||||||||||
Financial instruments owned, at fair value |
33,913 | | 230,667 | 47,668 | | 312,248 | ||||||||||||||||||
Other assets |
| | | | 22,599 | 22,599 | ||||||||||||||||||
Total assets |
$190,752 | $210,641 | $352,751 | $79,497 | $22,599 | $856,240 | ||||||||||||||||||
As of December 2013 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
$ in millions | |
GCLA and Cash |
1 |
|
Secured Client Financing |
|
|
Institutional Client Services |
|
|
Investing & Lending |
|
|
Other Assets |
|
|
Total Assets |
| ||||||
Cash and cash equivalents |
$ 61,133 | $ | $ | $ | $ | $ 61,133 | ||||||||||||||||||
Cash and securities segregated for regulatory and other purposes |
| 49,671 | | | | 49,671 | ||||||||||||||||||
Securities purchased under agreements to resell and federal funds sold |
64,595 | 61,510 | 35,081 | 546 | | 161,732 | ||||||||||||||||||
Securities borrowed |
25,113 | 94,899 | 44,554 | | | 164,566 | ||||||||||||||||||
Receivables from brokers, dealers and clearing organizations |
| 6,650 | 17,098 | 92 | | 23,840 | ||||||||||||||||||
Receivables from customers and counterparties |
| 50,656 | 22,459 | 925 | | 74,040 | ||||||||||||||||||
Loans receivable |
| | | 14,895 | | 14,895 | ||||||||||||||||||
Financial instruments owned, at fair value |
39,022 | | 255,534 | 44,565 | | 339,121 | ||||||||||||||||||
Other assets |
| | | | 22,509 | 22,509 | ||||||||||||||||||
Total assets |
$189,863 | $263,386 | $374,726 | $61,023 | $22,509 | $911,507 |
1. | Includes unencumbered cash, U.S. government and federal agency obligations (including highly liquid U.S. federal agency mortgage-backed obligations), and German, French, Japanese and United Kingdom government obligations. |
Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K | 69 |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Managements Discussion and Analysis
Balance Sheet Analysis and Metrics
During 2014, we undertook an initiative to reduce our balance sheet in response to regulatory developments, to improve the overall efficiency of our balance sheet and to position the firm to provide additional risk capacity to our clients. We performed a comprehensive analysis of our balance sheet and identified opportunities for reduction, primarily related to lower return activities within our matched book and other secured client financing activities.
As of December 2014, total assets on our consolidated statements of financial condition were $856.24 billion, a decrease of $55.27 billion from December 2013. This decrease was primarily due to a decrease in collateralized agreements of $37.64 billion, principally reflecting a decline in the matched book and a decrease in financial instruments owned, at fair value of $26.87 billion, primarily due to a decrease in U.S. government and federal agency obligations. These decreases were partially offset by an increase in loans receivable of $14.04 billion.
As of December 2014, total liabilities on our consolidated statements of financial condition were $773.44 billion, a decrease of $59.60 billion from December 2013. This decrease was primarily due to a decrease in collateralized financings of $91.75 billion, due to client activity and firm financing activity, including a decline in the matched book. This decrease was partially offset by an increase in deposits of $12.20 billion primarily used to fund the growth in our loans receivable, an increase in payables to customers and counterparties of $7.52 billion and an increase in unsecured long-term borrowings of $6.61 billion.
As of December 2014, our total securities sold under agreements to repurchase, accounted for as collateralized financings, were $88.22 billion, which was 3% lower and 26% lower than the daily average amount of repurchase agreements during the quarter ended and year ended December 2014, respectively. The decrease in our repurchase agreements relative to the daily average during 2014 resulted from a decrease in client and firm financing activity during the second half of the year, including a reduction in our matched book, primarily resulting from a firmwide initiative to reduce activities with lower returns.
As of December 2013, our total securities sold under agreements to repurchase, accounted for as collateralized financings, were $164.78 billion, which was 5% higher and 4% higher than the daily average amount of repurchase agreements during the quarter ended and year ended December 2013, respectively. The increase in our repurchase agreements relative to the daily average during 2013 was primarily due to an increase in client activity at the end of the period.
The level of our repurchase agreements fluctuates between and within periods, primarily due to providing clients with access to highly liquid collateral, such as U.S. government and federal agency, and investment-grade sovereign obligations through collateralized financing activities.
70 | Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Managements Discussion and Analysis
The table below presents information about our assets, unsecured long-term borrowings, shareholders equity and leverage ratios.
As of December | ||||||||
$ in millions | 2014 | 2013 | ||||||
Total assets |
$856,240 | $911,507 | ||||||
Unsecured long-term borrowings |
$167,571 | $160,965 | ||||||
Total shareholders equity |
$ 82,797 | $ 78,467 | ||||||
Leverage ratio |
10.3x | 11.6x | ||||||
Debt to equity ratio |
2.0x | 2.1x |
In the table above:
| The leverage ratio equals total assets divided by total shareholders equity and measures the proportion of equity and debt the firm is using to finance assets. This ratio is different from the Tier 1 leverage ratio included in Note 20 to the consolidated financial statements. |
| The debt to equity ratio equals unsecured long-term borrowings divided by total shareholders equity. |
The table below presents information about our shareholders equity and book value per common share, including the reconciliation of total shareholders equity to tangible common shareholders equity.
As of December | ||||||||
$ in millions, except per share amounts | 2014 | 2013 | ||||||
Total shareholders equity |
$ 82,797 | $ 78,467 | ||||||
Deduct: Preferred stock |
(9,200 | ) | (7,200 | ) | ||||
Common shareholders equity |
73,597 | 71,267 | ||||||
Deduct: Goodwill and identifiable intangible assets |
(4,160 | ) | (4,376 | ) | ||||
Tangible common shareholders equity |
$ 69,437 | $ 66,891 | ||||||
Book value per common share |
$ 163.01 | $ 152.48 | ||||||
Tangible book value per common share |
153.79 | 143.11 |
In the table above:
| Tangible common shareholders equity equals total shareholders equity less preferred stock, goodwill and identifiable intangible assets. We believe that tangible common shareholders equity is meaningful because it is a measure that we and investors use to assess capital adequacy. Tangible common shareholders equity is a non-GAAP measure and may not be comparable to similar non-GAAP measures used by other companies. |
| Book value per common share and tangible book value per common share are based on common shares outstanding, including restricted stock units (RSUs) granted to employees with no future service requirements, of 451.5 million and 467.4 million as of December 2014 and December 2013, respectively. We believe that tangible book value per common share (tangible common shareholders equity divided by common shares outstanding, including RSUs granted to employees with no future service requirements) is meaningful because it is a measure that we and investors use to assess capital adequacy. Tangible book value per common share is a non-GAAP measure and may not be comparable to similar non-GAAP measures used by other companies. |
Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K | 71 |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Managements Discussion and Analysis
Funding Sources
Our primary sources of funding are secured financings, unsecured long-term and short-term borrowings, and deposits. We seek to maintain broad and diversified funding sources globally across products, programs, markets, currencies and creditors to avoid funding concentrations.
We raise funding through a number of different products, including:
| Collateralized financings, such as repurchase agreements, securities loaned and other secured financings; |
| Long-term unsecured debt (including structured notes) through syndicated U.S. registered offerings, U.S. registered and Rule 144A medium-term note programs, offshore medium-term note offerings and other debt offerings; |
| Savings and demand deposits through deposit sweep programs and time deposits through internal and third-party broker-dealers; and |
| Short-term unsecured debt through U.S. and non-U.S. hybrid financial instruments, commercial paper and promissory note issuances and other methods. |
Our funding is primarily raised in U.S. dollar, Euro, British pound and Japanese yen. We generally distribute our funding products through our own sales force and third-party distributors, to a large, diverse creditor base in a variety of markets in the Americas, Europe and Asia. We believe that our relationships with our creditors are critical to our liquidity. Our creditors include banks, governments, securities lenders, pension funds, insurance companies, mutual funds and individuals. We have imposed various internal guidelines to monitor creditor concentration across our funding programs.
Secured Funding. We fund a significant amount of inventory on a secured basis. Secured funding is less sensitive to changes in our credit quality than unsecured funding, due to our posting of collateral to our lenders. Nonetheless, we continually analyze the refinancing risk of our secured funding activities, taking into account trade tenors, maturity profiles, counterparty concentrations, collateral eligibility and counterparty rollover probabilities. We seek to mitigate our refinancing risk by executing term trades with staggered maturities, diversifying counterparties, raising excess secured funding, and pre-funding residual risk through our GCLA.
We seek to raise secured funding with a term appropriate for the liquidity of the assets that are being financed, and we seek longer maturities for secured funding collateralized by asset classes that may be harder to fund on a secured basis especially during times of market stress. Substantially all of our secured funding, excluding funding collateralized by liquid government obligations, is executed for tenors of one month or greater. Assets that may be harder to fund on a secured basis during times of market stress include certain financial instruments in the following categories: mortgage and other asset-backed loans and securities, non-investment-grade corporate debt securities, equities and convertible debentures and emerging market securities. Assets that are classified as level 3 in the fair value hierarchy are generally funded on an unsecured basis. See Notes 5 and 6 to the consolidated financial statements for further information about the classification of financial instruments in the fair value hierarchy and Unsecured Long-Term Borrowings below for further information about the use of unsecured long-term borrowings as a source of funding.
The weighted average maturity of our secured funding, excluding funding collateralized by highly liquid securities eligible for inclusion in our GCLA, exceeded 120 days as of December 2014.
A majority of our secured funding for securities not eligible for inclusion in the GCLA is executed through term repurchase agreements and securities lending contracts. We also raise financing through other types of collateralized financings, such as secured loans and notes. In December 2014, Goldman Sachs Bank USA (GS Bank USA) received approval to access funding from the Federal Home Loan Bank. As of December 2014, we had not accessed this funding. In addition, GS Bank USA has access to funding through the Federal Reserve Bank discount window. While we do not rely on this funding in our liquidity planning and stress testing, we maintain policies and procedures necessary to access this funding and test discount window borrowing procedures.
72 | Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Managements Discussion and Analysis
Unsecured Long-Term Borrowings. We issue unsecured long-term borrowings as a source of funding for inventory and other assets and to finance a portion of our GCLA. We issue in different tenors, currencies and products to
maximize the diversification of our investor base. The chart below presents our quarterly unsecured long-term borrowings maturity profile through the fourth quarter of 2020 as of December 2014.
The weighted average maturity of our unsecured long-term borrowings as of December 2014 was approximately eight years. To mitigate refinancing risk, we seek to limit the principal amount of debt maturing on any one day or during any week or year. We enter into interest rate swaps
to convert a substantial portion of our unsecured long-term borrowings into floating-rate obligations in order to manage our exposure to interest rates. See Note 16 to the consolidated financial statements for further information about our unsecured long-term borrowings.
Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K | 73 |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Managements Discussion and Analysis
Deposits. As part of our efforts to diversify our funding base, we raise deposits mainly through GS Bank USA and Goldman Sachs International Bank (GSIB). The tables below present the types and sources of our deposits.
As of December 2014 | ||||||||||||
$ in millions | |
Savings and Demand |
1 |
Time | 2 | Total | ||||||
Private bank deposits 3 |
$33,590 | $ 1,609 | $35,199 | |||||||||
Certificates of deposit |
| 25,908 | 25,908 | |||||||||
Deposit sweep programs 4 |
15,691 | | 15,691 | |||||||||
Institutional |
12 | 6,198 | 6,210 | |||||||||
Total 5 |
$49,293 | $33,715 | $83,008 | |||||||||
As of December 2013 | ||||||||||||
$ in millions | |
Savings and Demand |
1 |
Time | 2 | Total | ||||||
Private bank deposits 3 |
$30,475 | $ 212 | $30,687 | |||||||||
Certificates of deposit |
| 19,709 | 19,709 | |||||||||
Deposit sweep programs 4 |
15,511 | | 15,511 | |||||||||
Institutional |
33 | 4,867 | 4,900 | |||||||||
Total 5 |
$46,019 | $24,788 | $70,807 |
1. | Represents deposits with no stated maturity. |
2. | Weighted average maturity of approximately three years as of both December 2014 and December 2013. |
3. | Substantially all were from overnight deposit sweep programs related to private wealth management clients. |
4. | Represents long-term contractual agreements with several U.S. broker-dealers who sweep client cash to FDIC-insured deposits. |
5. | Deposits insured by the FDIC as of December 2014 and December 2013 were approximately $45.72 billion and $41.22 billion, respectively. |
Unsecured Short-Term Borrowings. A significant portion of our unsecured short-term borrowings was originally long-term debt that is scheduled to mature within one year of the reporting date. We use unsecured short-term borrowings to finance liquid assets and for other cash management purposes. We issue hybrid financial instruments, commercial paper and promissory notes.
As of December 2014 and December 2013, our unsecured short-term borrowings, including the current portion of unsecured long-term borrowings, were $44.54 billion and $44.69 billion, respectively. See Note 15 to the consolidated financial statements for further information about our unsecured short-term borrowings.
Equity Capital Management and Regulatory Capital
Capital adequacy is of critical importance to us. Our objective is to be conservatively capitalized in terms of the amount and composition of our equity base, both relative to our risk exposures and compared to external requirements and benchmarks. Accordingly, we have in place a comprehensive capital management policy that provides a framework and set of guidelines to assist us in determining the level and composition of capital that we target and maintain.
Equity Capital Management
We determine the appropriate level and composition of our equity capital by considering multiple factors including our current and future consolidated regulatory capital requirements, the results of our capital planning and stress testing process and other factors such as rating agency guidelines, subsidiary capital requirements, the business environment, conditions in the financial markets, and assessments of potential future losses due to adverse changes in our business and market environments. Our capital planning and stress testing process incorporates our internally designed stress tests and those required under CCAR and DFAST rules, and is also designed to identify and measure material risks associated with our business activities, including market risk, credit risk and operational risk. We project sources and uses of capital given a range of business environments, including stressed conditions. In addition, as part of our comprehensive capital management policy, we maintain a contingency capital plan that provides a framework for analyzing and responding to an actual or perceived capital shortfall.
We principally manage the level and composition of our equity capital through issuances and repurchases of our common stock. We may also, from time to time, issue or repurchase our preferred stock, junior subordinated debt issued to trusts, and other subordinated debt or other forms of capital as business conditions warrant. Prior to any repurchases, we must receive confirmation that the Federal Reserve Board does not object to such capital actions. We manage our capital requirements and the levels of our capital usage principally by setting limits on balance sheet assets and/or limits on risk, in each case both at the consolidated and business levels. See Notes 16 and 19 to the consolidated financial statements for further information about our preferred stock, junior subordinated debt issued to trusts and other subordinated debt.
74 | Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Managements Discussion and Analysis
Capital Planning and Stress Testing Process. Our capital planning and stress testing process incorporates our internally designed stress tests and those required under CCAR and DFAST. The process is designed to identify and measure material risks associated with our business activities. We also perform an internal risk-based capital assessment, attribute capital usage to each of our businesses and maintain a contingency capital plan. The following is a description of our capital planning and stress testing process:
| Stress Testing. Our stress testing process incorporates an internal capital adequacy assessment with the objective of ensuring that the firm is appropriately capitalized relative to the risks in our business. As part of our assessment, we project sources and uses of capital given a range of business environments, including stressed conditions. Our stress tests incorporate our internally designed stress scenarios, including our internally developed severely adverse scenario, and those required under CCAR and DFAST rules, and are designed to capture our specific vulnerabilities and risks and to analyze whether we hold an appropriate amount of capital. Our goal is to hold sufficient capital to ensure we remain adequately capitalized after experiencing a severe stress event. Our assessment of capital adequacy is viewed in tandem with our assessment of liquidity adequacy and is integrated into our overall risk management structure, governance and policy framework. We provide additional information about our stress test processes and a summary of the results on our web site as described under Business Available Information in Part I, Item 1 of the 2014 Form 10-K. |
| Internal Risk-Based Capital Assessment. Our capital planning process includes an internal risk-based capital assessment. This assessment incorporates market risk, credit risk and operational risk. Market risk is calculated by using Value-at-Risk (VaR) calculations supplemented by risk-based add-ons which include risks related to rare events (tail risks). Credit risk utilizes assumptions about our counterparties probability of default and the size of our losses in the event of a default. Operational risk is calculated based on scenarios incorporating multiple types of operational failures as well as incorporating internal and external actual loss experience. Backtesting is used to gauge the effectiveness of models at capturing and measuring relevant risks. |
| Capital Attribution. We attribute capital usage to each of our businesses based upon regulatory capital requirements as well as our internal risk-based capital assessment. We manage the levels of our capital usage based upon balance sheet and risk limits, as well as capital return analyses of our businesses based on our capital attribution. We also attribute risk-weighted assets (RWAs) to our business segments. As of December 2014, approximately 70% of RWAs calculated under the Basel III Advanced Rules, subject to transitional provisions, were attributed to our Institutional Client Services segment and substantially all of the remaining RWAs were attributed to our Investing & Lending segment. |
| Contingency Capital Plan. As part of our comprehensive capital management policy, we maintain a contingency capital plan. Our contingency capital plan provides a framework for analyzing and responding to a perceived or actual capital deficiency, including, but not limited to, identification of drivers of a capital deficiency, as well as mitigants and potential actions. It outlines the appropriate communication procedures to follow during a crisis period, including internal dissemination of information as well as timely communication with external stakeholders. |
As required by the Federal Reserve Boards annual CCAR rules, we submit a capital plan for review by the Federal Reserve Board. The purpose of the Federal Reserve Boards review is to ensure that we have a robust, forward-looking capital planning process that accounts for our unique risks and that permits continued operation during times of economic and financial stress.
Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K | 75 |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Managements Discussion and Analysis
The Federal Reserve Board evaluates us based, in part, on whether we have the capital necessary to continue operating under the baseline and stress scenarios provided by the Federal Reserve Board and those developed internally. This evaluation also takes into account our process for identifying risk, our controls and governance for capital planning, and our guidelines for making capital planning decisions. In addition, the Federal Reserve Board evaluates our plan to make capital distributions (i.e., dividend payments and repurchases or redemptions of stock, subordinated debt or other capital securities) and issue capital, across a range of macroeconomic scenarios and firm-specific assumptions.
In addition, the DFAST rules require us to conduct stress tests on a semi-annual basis and publish a summary of certain results. The annual DFAST submission is incorporated into our CCAR submission. The Federal Reserve Board also conducts its own annual stress tests and publishes a summary of certain results.
We submitted our initial 2014 CCAR to the Federal Reserve Board in January 2014 and, based on the Federal Reserve Board feedback, we submitted revised capital actions in March 2014. The Federal Reserve Board informed us that it did not object to our revised capital actions, including the repurchase of outstanding common stock, an increase in our quarterly common stock dividend and the possible issuance, redemption and modification of other capital securities through the first quarter of 2015. We published a summary of our annual DFAST results in March 2014. See Business Available Information in Part I, Item 1 of the 2014 Form 10-K. We submitted our 2015 CCAR to the Federal Reserve Board in January 2015 and expect to publish a summary of our annual DFAST results in March 2015.
In addition, we submitted the results of our mid-cycle DFAST to the Federal Reserve Board in July 2014 and published a summary of our mid-cycle DFAST results under our internally developed severely adverse scenario in September 2014. We provide additional information on our internal stress test processes, our internally developed severely adverse scenario used for mid-cycle DFAST and a summary of the results on our web site as described under Business Available Information in Part I, Item 1 of the 2014 Form 10-K.
In October 2014, the Federal Reserve Board issued a final rule modifying the regulations for capital planning and stress testing. The modifications change the dates for submitting the capital plan and stress test results beginning with the 2016 cycle and include a limitation on capital distributions to the extent that actual capital issuances are less than the amount indicated in the capital plan submission.
In addition, the rules adopted by the Federal Reserve Board under the U.S. Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank Act) require GS Bank USA to conduct stress tests on an annual basis and publish a summary of certain results. GS Bank USA submitted its 2014 annual DFAST stress results to the Federal Reserve Board in January 2014 and published a summary of its results in March 2014. See Business Available Information in Part I, Item 1 of the 2014 Form 10-K. GS Bank USA submitted its 2015 annual DFAST results to the Federal Reserve Board in January 2015 and expects to publish a summary of its results in March 2015.
Share Repurchase Program. We use our share repurchase program to help maintain the appropriate level of common equity. The repurchase program is effected primarily through regular open-market purchases (which may include repurchase plans designed to comply with Rule 10b5-1), the amounts and timing of which are determined primarily by our current and projected capital position, but which may also be influenced by general market conditions and the prevailing price and trading volumes of our common stock.
As of December 2014, under the share repurchase program approved by the Board of Directors of Group Inc. (Board), we can repurchase up to 25.4 million additional shares of common stock; however, prior to any such repurchases, we must receive confirmation that the Federal Reserve Board does not object to such capital actions. See Market for Registrants Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities in Part II, Item 5 of the 2014 Form 10-K and Note 19 to the consolidated financial statements for additional information about our share repurchase program and see above for information about our capital planning and stress testing process.
76 | Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Managements Discussion and Analysis
Resolution and Recovery Plans
We are required by the Federal Reserve Board and the FDIC to submit an annual plan that describes our strategy for a rapid and orderly resolution in the event of material financial distress or failure (resolution plan). We are also required by the Federal Reserve Board to submit, on an annual basis, a global recovery plan that outlines the steps that management could take to reduce risk, maintain sufficient liquidity, and conserve capital in times of prolonged stress. We submitted our 2013 resolution plan in September 2013 and our 2014 resolution plan in June 2014. In August 2014, the Federal Reserve Board and the FDIC indicated that we and other large industry participants had certain shortcomings in the 2013 resolution plans that must be addressed in the 2015 resolution plans, which are required to be submitted on or before July 1, 2015.
In addition, GS Bank USA is required by the FDIC to submit a resolution plan. GS Bank USA submitted its 2013 resolution plan in September 2013 and its 2014 resolution plan in June 2014. GS Bank USAs 2015 resolution plan is required to be submitted on or before July 1, 2015.
Rating Agency Guidelines
The credit rating agencies assign credit ratings to the obligations of Group Inc., which directly issues or guarantees substantially all of the firms senior unsecured obligations. Goldman, Sachs & Co. (GS&Co.), Goldman Sachs International (GSI) and GSIB have been assigned long- and short-term issuer ratings by certain credit rating agencies. GS Bank USA has also been assigned long- and short-term issuer ratings, as well as ratings on its long-term and short-term bank deposits. In addition, credit rating agencies have assigned ratings to debt obligations of certain other subsidiaries of Group Inc.
The level and composition of our equity capital are among the many factors considered in determining our credit ratings. Each agency has its own definition of eligible capital and methodology for evaluating capital adequacy, and assessments are generally based on a combination of factors rather than a single calculation. See Liquidity Risk Management Credit Ratings for further information about credit ratings of Group Inc., GS Bank USA, GSIB, GS&Co. and GSI.
Consolidated Regulatory Capital
As of December 2013, we were subject to the risk-based capital regulations of the Federal Reserve Board that were based on the Basel I Capital Accord of the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (Basel Committee), and incorporated the revised market risk regulatory capital requirements (together, the Prior Capital Rules).
As of January 1, 2014, we became subject to the Federal Reserve Boards revised risk-based capital and leverage regulations, subject to certain transitional provisions (Revised Capital Framework). These regulations are largely based on the Basel Committees final capital framework for strengthening international capital standards (Basel III) and also implement certain provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act. Under the Revised Capital Framework, we are an Advanced approach banking organization.
We were notified in the first quarter of 2014 that we had completed a parallel run to the satisfaction of the Federal Reserve Board, as required under the Revised Capital Framework. As such, additional changes in our capital requirements became effective on April 1, 2014.
Beginning on January 1, 2014, regulatory capital was calculated based on the Revised Capital Framework. Beginning on April 1, 2014, there were no changes to the calculation of regulatory capital, but RWAs were calculated using (i) the Prior Capital Rules, adjusted for certain items related to capital deductions under the previous definition of regulatory capital and for the phase-in of new capital deductions (Hybrid Capital Rules), and (ii) the Advanced approach and market risk rules set out in the Revised Capital Framework (together, the Basel III Advanced Rules). The lower of the ratios calculated under the Hybrid Capital Rules and those calculated under the Basel III Advanced Rules are our binding regulatory capital requirements.
As a result of the changes in the applicable capital framework in 2014, our capital ratios as of December 2014 and those as of December 2013 included in Note 20 to the consolidated financial statements were calculated on a different basis and, accordingly, are not comparable. See Note 20 to the consolidated financial statements for our capital ratios as of December 2013, a description of the Prior Capital Rules, and for additional information about the Revised Capital Framework, including the transitional arrangements related to new deductions from Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) and information about RWAs.
Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K | 77 |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Managements Discussion and Analysis
Effective on January 1, 2015, regulatory capital continues to be calculated under the Revised Capital Framework, but RWAs are required to be calculated under the Basel III Advanced Rules, as well as the Standardized approach and market risk rules set out in the Revised Capital Framework (together, the Standardized Capital Rules) as discussed in Note 20 to the consolidated financial statements. The lower of the ratios calculated under the Basel III Advanced Rules and those calculated under the Standardized Capital Rules are our binding regulatory capital requirements.
Minimum Capital Ratios and Capital Buffers
The table below presents the minimum ratios under the Revised Capital Framework as of December 2014 and January 2015, as well as the minimum ratios that we expect will apply at the end of the transitional provisions beginning January 2019.
|
December 2014 Minimum Ratio |
1 |
|
January 2015 Minimum Ratio |
1 |
|
January 2019 Minimum Ratio |
| ||||
CET1 ratio |
4.0% | 4.5% | 8.5% | 4 | ||||||||
Tier 1 capital ratio |
5.5% | 6.0% | 10.0% | 4 | ||||||||
Total capital ratio |
8.0% | 3 | 8.0% | 3 | 12.0% | 4 | ||||||
Tier 1 leverage ratio 2 |
4.0% | 4.0% | 4.0% |
1. | Does not reflect the capital conservation buffer or provisional Global Systemically Important Banks (G-SIB) buffer discussed below. |
2. | Tier 1 leverage ratio is defined as Tier 1 capital divided by average adjusted total assets (which includes adjustments for goodwill and identifiable intangible assets, and certain investments in nonconsolidated financial institutions). |
3. | In order to meet the quantitative requirements for being well-capitalized under the Federal Reserve Boards capital regulations, the firm must meet a higher required minimum Total capital ratio of 10.0%. |
4. | Includes the required increases in minimum ratios on January 1, 2015, the capital conservation buffer of 2.5% and a provisional G-SIB buffer of 1.5% under the Basel Committees methodology discussed below. |
The table below presents the supplementary leverage ratio. See Supplementary Leverage Ratio below for further information.
|
January 2018 Minimum Ratio |
| ||
Supplementary leverage ratio |
5.0% | 1 |
1. | Includes the minimum requirement of 3.0% and a buffer of 2.0% discussed below. |
Under the Revised Capital Framework, on January 1, 2015, the minimum CET1 ratio increased from 4.0% to 4.5% and the minimum Tier 1 capital ratio increased from 5.5% to 6.0%. In addition, these minimum ratios will be supplemented by a new capital conservation buffer, consisting entirely of capital that qualifies as CET1, that phases in, beginning on January 1, 2016, in increments of 0.625% per year until it reaches 2.5% of RWAs on January 1, 2019.
The January 2019 minimum ratios in the table above assume the future implementation of an additional preliminary buffer for G-SIBs. Under the methodology published by the Basel Committee, the required amount of additional CET1 for these institutions will initially range from 1% to 2.5% and could be higher in the future for a banking institution that increases its systemic footprint (e.g., by increasing total assets). In November 2014, the Financial Stability Board (established at the direction of the leaders of the Group of 20) indicated that, based on our 2013 financial data, we would be required to hold an additional 1.5% of CET1 as a G-SIB.
In December 2014, the Federal Reserve Board proposed a rule which would establish risk-based capital surcharges for U.S. G-SIBs that are higher than those required by the Basel Committee. Under the proposed rule, U.S. G-SIBs would be required to meet these higher capital surcharges on a phased-in basis, beginning in 2016 through 2019. The proposed rule treats the Basel Committees methodology as a floor and introduces an alternative calculation to determine the applicable surcharge, which includes a significantly higher surcharge for systemic risk and, as part of the calculation of the applicable surcharge, a new factor based on a G-SIBs use of short-term wholesale funding. Under a preliminary assessment of the proposed rule, our surcharge has been estimated to be 100 basis points higher than the 1.5% surcharge under the Basel Committees methodology. The table above does not reflect this additional surcharge. This preliminary estimate is subject to significant interpretive assumptions and may change in the future, perhaps materially, due to, among other things (i) any changes in the final rule, the interpretations we have made, or data used in the calculation; (ii) changes in foreign exchange rates, which may have the effect of increasing or decreasing the proportion of the systemic risk measures applicable to U.S. G-SIBs; (iii) increases or decreases in any of the indicators used in the assessment of our systemic risk, including our use of short-term wholesale funding; or (iv) increases or decreases in indicators at any of the other banks that are included in the Basel Committees methodology.
The Revised Capital Framework also provides a new counter-cyclical capital buffer of up to 2.5% (and also consisting entirely of CET1), to be imposed in the event that national supervisors deem it necessary in order to counteract excessive credit growth. The table above does not reflect this buffer.
Our regulators could change these buffers in the future. As a result, the minimum ratios we are subject to as of January 1, 2019 could be higher than the amounts presented in the table above.
78 | Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Managements Discussion and Analysis
Fully Phased-in Capital Ratios
The table below presents our estimated ratio of CET1 to RWAs calculated under the Basel III Advanced Rules and the Standardized Capital Rules on a fully phased-in basis.
As of December | ||||||||
$ in millions | 2014 | 2013 | ||||||
Common shareholders equity |
$ 73,597 | $ 71,267 | ||||||
Deductions for goodwill and identifiable intangible assets, net of deferred tax liabilities |
(3,196 | ) | (3,468 | ) | ||||
Deductions for investments in nonconsolidated financial institutions |
(4,928 | ) | (9,091 | ) | ||||
Other adjustments |
(1,213 | ) | (489 | ) | ||||
CET1 |
$ 64,260 | $ 58,219 | ||||||
Basel III Advanced RWAs |
$577,869 | $594,662 | ||||||
Basel III Advanced CET1 ratio |
11.1% | 9.8% | ||||||
Standardized RWAs |
$627,444 | $635,092 | ||||||
Standardized CET1 ratio |
10.2% | 9.2% |
Although the fully phased-in capital ratios are not applicable until 2019, we believe that the estimated ratios in the table above are meaningful because they are measures that we, our regulators and investors use to assess our ability to meet future regulatory capital requirements. The estimated fully phased-in Basel III Advanced and Standardized CET1 ratios are non-GAAP measures as of both December 2014 and December 2013 and may not be comparable to similar non-GAAP measures used by other companies (as of those dates). These estimated ratios are based on our current interpretation, expectations and understanding of the Revised Capital Framework and may evolve as we discuss its interpretation and application with our regulators.
See Note 20 to the consolidated financial statements for information about our transitional capital ratios, which represent our binding ratios as of December 2014.
In the table above:
| The deduction for goodwill and identifiable intangible assets, net of deferred tax liabilities, represents goodwill of $3.65 billion and $3.71 billion as of December 2014 and December 2013, respectively, and identifiable intangible assets of $515 million and $671 million as of December 2014 and December 2013, respectively, net of associated deferred tax liabilities of $964 million and $908 million as of December 2014 and December 2013, respectively. |
| The deduction for investments in nonconsolidated financial institutions represents the amount by which our investments in the capital of nonconsolidated financial institutions exceed certain prescribed thresholds. The decrease from December 2013 to December 2014 primarily reflects reductions in our fund investments. |
| Other adjustments primarily include the overfunded portion of our defined benefit pension plan obligation, net of associated deferred tax liabilities, and disallowed deferred tax assets, credit valuation adjustments on derivative liabilities and debt valuation adjustments, as well as other required credit risk-based deductions. |
Supplementary Leverage Ratio
The Revised Capital Framework introduces a new supplementary leverage ratio for Advanced approach banking organizations. Under amendments to the Revised Capital Framework, the U.S. federal bank regulatory agencies approved a final rule that implements the supplementary leverage ratio aligned with the definition of leverage established by the Basel Committee. The supplementary leverage ratio compares Tier 1 capital to a measure of leverage exposure, defined as the sum of our quarterly average assets less certain deductions plus certain off-balance-sheet exposures, including a measure of derivatives exposures and commitments. The Revised Capital Framework requires a minimum supplementary leverage ratio of 5.0% (comprised of the minimum requirement of 3.0% and a 2.0% buffer) for U.S. banks deemed to be G-SIBs, effective on January 1, 2018. Certain disclosures regarding the supplementary leverage ratio are required beginning in the first quarter of 2015.
As of December 2014, our estimated supplementary leverage ratio was 5.0%, including Tier 1 capital on a fully phased-in basis of $73.17 billion (CET1 of $64.26 billion plus perpetual non-cumulative preferred stock of $9.20 billion less other adjustments of $290 million) divided by total leverage exposure of $1.45 trillion (total quarterly average assets of $873 billion plus adjustments of $579 billion, primarily comprised of off-balance-sheet exposure related to derivatives and commitments).
We believe that the estimated supplementary leverage ratio is meaningful because it is a measure that we, our regulators and investors use to assess our ability to meet future regulatory capital requirements. The supplementary leverage ratio is a non-GAAP measure and may not be comparable to similar non-GAAP measures used by other companies.
This estimated supplementary leverage ratio is based on our current interpretation and understanding of the U.S. federal bank regulatory agencies final rule and may evolve as we discuss its interpretation and application with our regulators.
Goldman Sachs 2014 Form 10-K | 79 |
THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
Managements Discussion and Analysis
Subsidiary Capital Requirements