U.K. fines Goldman $27 million in 'Fab' case

By Aaron Smith, staff writer


NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Britain's Financial Services Authority said Thursday it has fined Goldman Sachs International nearly $27 million for not disclosing its investigation by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

The regulatory agency said Goldman should have revealed that it was under investigation by the SEC for the allegedly fraudulent activity of Fabrice Tourre, a London-based Goldman trader.

The FSA said the fine of £17.5 million stems from Goldman's "failure to notify the FSA of matters related to the [SEC] investigation into the Abacus 2007-AC1 synthetic collateralized debt obligation."

An SEC lawsuit accused Tourre of selling the "Abacus" portfolio of real estate investments in 2007 that had a high likelihood of losing value because it was selected by Paulson & Co., a hedge fund that was betting it would fail. The SEC says that Tourre concealed Paulson's role from investors, who lost $1 billion on the deal.

Tourre has denied the allegations, which included the SEC's reference to a 2007 e-mail in which the trader said that he knew of his firm's corrosive investments and boasted of his Wall Street prowess, referring to himself as the "fabulous Fab."

The FSA said Goldman should have been forthcoming about the U.S.-based investigation.

"GSI did not set out to hide anything, but its defective systems and controls meant that the level and quality of its communications with the FSA fell far below what we expect of an authorized firm," said Margaret Cole, managing director of enforcement and financial crime for the FSA.

"We've agreed to the fine," said Goldman spokesman Mike DuVally. "We're pleased this matter has been resolved." He said the firm would not admit or deny the U.K. charges.

The FSA fine is in addition to a $550 million settlement with the SEC for allegedly misleading investors. Goldman agreed to the U.S. fine in July without admitting or denying the charges against it. To top of page

Just the hot list include
Frontline troops push for solar energy
The U.S. Marines are testing renewable energy technologies like solar to reduce costs and casualties associated with fossil fuels. Play
25 Best Places to find rich singles
Looking for Mr. or Ms. Moneybags? Hunt down the perfect mate in these wealthy cities, which are brimming with unattached professionals. More
Fun festivals: Twins to mustard to pirates!
You'll see double in Twinsburg, Ohio, and Ketchup lovers should beware in Middleton, WI. Here's some of the best and strangest town festivals. Play
Overnight Avg Rate Latest Change Last Week
30 yr fixed3.80%3.88%
15 yr fixed3.20%3.23%
5/1 ARM3.84%3.88%
30 yr refi3.82%3.93%
15 yr refi3.20%3.23%
Rate data provided
by Bankrate.com
View rates in your area
 
Find personalized rates:
Index Last Change % Change
Dow 32,627.97 -234.33 -0.71%
Nasdaq 13,215.24 99.07 0.76%
S&P 500 3,913.10 -2.36 -0.06%
Treasuries 1.73 0.00 0.12%
Data as of 6:29am ET
Company Price Change % Change
Ford Motor Co 8.29 0.05 0.61%
Advanced Micro Devic... 54.59 0.70 1.30%
Cisco Systems Inc 47.49 -2.44 -4.89%
General Electric Co 13.00 -0.16 -1.22%
Kraft Heinz Co 27.84 -2.20 -7.32%
Data as of 2:44pm ET
Sponsors

Sections

Bankrupt toy retailer tells bankruptcy court it is looking at possibly reviving the Toys 'R' Us and Babies 'R' Us brands. More

Land O'Lakes CEO Beth Ford charts her career path, from her first job to becoming the first openly gay CEO at a Fortune 500 company in an interview with CNN's Boss Files. More

Most stock quote data provided by BATS. Market indices are shown in real time, except for the DJIA, which is delayed by two minutes. All times are ET. Disclaimer. Morningstar: © 2018 Morningstar, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Factset: FactSet Research Systems Inc. 2018. All rights reserved. Chicago Mercantile Association: Certain market data is the property of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. and its licensors. All rights reserved. Dow Jones: The Dow Jones branded indices are proprietary to and are calculated, distributed and marketed by DJI Opco, a subsidiary of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC and have been licensed for use to S&P Opco, LLC and CNN. Standard & Poor's and S&P are registered trademarks of Standard & Poor's Financial Services LLC and Dow Jones is a registered trademark of Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC. All content of the Dow Jones branded indices © S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC 2018 and/or its affiliates.