Goldman Sachs banker apologises to MPs for not disclosing BHS talks

[think]

Goldman Sachs banker apologises to MPs for not disclosing BHS talks

Graham Ruddick and Sarah Butler
Wednesday 29 June 2016 06.46 EDT


The leading British banker at Goldman Sachs has apologised to MPs after he revealed that the bank was approached by Sir Philip Green about offering a £40m loan to BHS when it was bought by Dominic Chappell.

Goldman had not previously disclosed talks about the loan, despite giving oral and written evidence to the parliamentary committee investigating the demise of BHS.

Iain Wright, the chair of the business, innovation and skills committee, said: “How can clients trust you when you’ve failed to remember a potential £40m transaction?”

Michael Sherwood, a vice-chairman of the bank, said sorry, declaring that he had forgotten the conversation with Green and that a formal request for the loan did not materialise. “We never put terms of the loan, ever,” he said....

Read more:
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2016/jun/29/bhs-committee-goldman-sachs-michael-sherwood-apologises-not-disclosing-talks

BHS collapse: Goldman Sachs is left looking foolish

Wednesday 29 June 2016 14.03 EDT

It is a remarkable thing to say about Goldman Sachs but, to judge by vice chairman Michael Sherwood’s shrunken and apologetic demeanour in front of MPs, he knows it himself: the investment bank was a naive fool in the BHS debacle. And that’s the generous interpretation of events.

Sherwood arrived in Westminster repeating colleague Anthony Gutman’s previous line that Goldman had only a walk-on role in Sir Philip Green’s disastrous sale of BHS to thrice-bankrupt Dominic Chappell. The bank wasn’t engaged formally by Green as an adviser and had declined to be so. It didn’t earn a penny in fees. Its job was merely to provide informal observations. And – most importantly – Goldman never told Green it was OK to proceed with Chappell, said Sherwood.

Contrast that account with the version told by Green and his band of loyal Arcadia executives who have emphasised Goldman’s role as “gatekeeper” and “adviser” on the deal. Green said a couple of weeks ago that “one million per cent” he would have ditched Chappell if he had failed Goldman’s “sniff test.”..


Read more:
https://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2016/jun/29/bhs-collapse-goldman-sachs-looking-foolish-philip-green

Additional background:

http://www.wsj.com/articles/goldman-sachs-bankers-face-criticism-over-bhs-deal-1467204918

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/8fa15858-315a-11e6-ad39-3fee5ffe5b5b.html#axzz4DG5GH5Pr

http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/markets/article-3626436/Goldman-Sachs-exposed-leaked-BHS-email-congratulating-bankrupt-Dominic-Chappell-purchase-retailer.html

https://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2016/jun/29/bhs-collapse-goldman-sachs-looking-foolish-philip-green

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2016/06/29/goldmans-sachs-denies-any-blame-for-bhs-collapse/

http://news.sky.com/story/1710397/goldman-rejects-demand-from-bhs-probe-mps

http://www.bbc.com/news/business-36661667

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/4244eb98-281c-11e6-8ba3-cdd781d02d89.html#axzz4DG5GH5Pr