Goldman Sachs NZ fee income rose in 2012, helped by Fonterra Fund, MRP, Blue Star

Wednesday 1st May 2013

Goldman Sachs New Zealand Holdings, the local unit of the Wall Street investment bank, posted a 12 percent gain in fees and commissions last year as it won a share of deals such as the Fonterra Shareholders' Fund sale of units and advice on MightyRiverPower.

Fees and commissions rose to $27.3 million in calendar 2012, from $24.3 million a year earlier, the firm's financial statements show. Total revenue including returns on investing jumped 43 percent to $31.7 million. It posted a net profit of $5.3 million, from a loss of $3.6 million a year earlier, when operating expenses outstripped revenue.

No dividend was paid in 2012 after it made a payment of $19.4 million in 2011, when Goldman Sachs acquired the 55 percent of its Australian joint venture it didn't already own from current and former executives of Goldman and JBWere. The US firm had been a minority owner of the Australian business since buying 45 percent of JBWere in 2003.

Last year was relatively busy for the firm. It won work advising the Treasury on the selldown of MightyRiverPower, was hired by Champ Private Equity to sell Blue Star, was joint lead manager of Retirement Villages New Zealand's sale of its shares in Metlifecare and was a joint manager and organiser for Fonterra's sale of units in its NZX-listed fund.

The biggest operating expense was employee related costs, which rose to $16.8 million in 2012 from $15.5 million a year earlier.

Goldman Sachs had some $28.6 million in cash at the bank at the end of 2011, up from $16.4 million a year earlier.

Its ultimate New York Stock Exchange-listed parent, Goldman Sachs Group, this month posted a 7.2 percent gain in first-quarter profit to US$2.26 billion on strong growth in revenue from stock and bond underwriting. The shares last traded at US$146.07, valuing the company at US$66.9 billion, and have gained 14 percent this year.

BusinessDesk.co.nz

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