The SEC’s $550 million settlement with Goldman Sachs — in which the company paid a fine but did not have to admit guilt in a case where it failed to disclose conflicts of interest to investors – is widely seen as laughable for a few reasons.
- Goldman didn’t have to admit guilt.
- The fine is piddly – Goldman can make that up with the profits from 6 trading days. The $550 million total represents just 4% of Goldman’s record $13.4 billion in profits last year.
- Nothing was changed to prevent this from happening again.
So much for Washington getting tough on the banksters. Here’s some outrage from someone who used to work for Goldman Sachs …
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To put Goldman’s “punishment” in perspective, a man in California was sentenced to 25 years to life for stealing a slice of pizza. Goldman plays a part in wrecking the global financial system and it gets a “mosquito” of a punishment.
On the plus side, European Central banks, having learned their lesson, are freezing Goldman Sachs out of new sales of sovereign bonds.
Related Posts
- Jon Stewart on Goldman Sachs (04/20/10)
- How Goldman Sachs Screwed the Pooch (04/17/10)
- Jon Stewart on How Goldman Sachs Fixes its Problem (07/31/10)
- Jon Stewart on the Continuing Goldman Sachs Circus of Shame (04/28/10)
- Charts of the Day — Goldman Sachs and Bank of Montreal (01/27/10)


{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
HI
when giving ways to play different positions in the market through video can you please show the
ticker symbols on the screen,i do —NOT HEAR—maybe some of your other followers have the same problem as i do.
Thank You for your time, be well SAM
HI
Can you please show the ticker symbols on the screen when video brodcasting because i do—DO NOT HEAR–maybe some of your other followers have the same problem.
Thank You
SAM
This $550 million settlement is absurd. The SEC should be cleaned out for its ineptitude. The fine should have been $13 Billion which is what they made on this illegal fraudulent deal. Anything else is a betrayal of the taxpayers by its government.
Where were these people, the media or the SEC when this was going on? Why isn’t the media giving us any in depth information? Seems like it is still business as usual.
Where are they now as it still goes on?
Was this a result of decontrol? The repeal of those antiquated depression era laws.