(Adds regulatory probe on credit cards)
Feb 24 (Reuters) - Goldman Sachs Group Inc is
expecting to incur $2.3 billion more in potential losses from
legal proceedings than the reserves it had set aside for such
matters last year, a regulatory filing by the investment bank
showed on Friday.
That was in line with what the bank had estimated at the end
of its third quarter in September, but was higher than the $2
billion loss it projected in 2021.
Goldman has been a target of lawsuits ranging from its role
in Malaysia's 1MDB sovereign wealth fund scandal to the collapse
of Archegos Capital Management in 2021.
A long-running gender bias lawsuit alleging widespread bias
against women in pay and promotions at the Wall Street bank is
also expected to head to trial later this year.
Goldman Sachs also said it is cooperating with the Consumer
Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and other governmental bodies
relating to investigations and inquiries concerning the bank's
U.S. credit card account management practices.
In the last regulatory filing it had mentioned the CFPB
probe, but the latest filing suggested other government bodies
were also seeking inquiries. The company did not identify the
other bodies.
Goldman also approved a $30-billion stock buyback program in
February, it disclosed in the filing.
The disclosure comes ahead of a crucial investor day, where
Chief Executive David Solomon is expected to present plans to
reach key financial goals after some missteps that led Goldman
to temper ambitions for its consumer banking unit Marcus.
Investment banks are hoping for a rebound in dealmaking in
the second half of 2023 as the Federal Reserve eases off its
rate-hike cycle, after a tough year when financing dried up and
companies postponed plans for mergers and acquisitions.
Last month, Goldman said it was cutting around 3,200 jobs,
which comprised 6% of its workforce in an attempt to cut costs.
Goldman's shares were down nearly 0.5% in premarket trading
on Friday, in line with other major U.S. banks. They had gained
nearly 11% in the past year.
(Reporting by Niket Nishant in Bengaluru and Saeed Azhar in New
York; Editing by Arun Koyyur and Shounak Dasgupta)
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