Ruth J. Simmons Will Not Stand for Re-Election to the Goldman Sachs Board of Directors

New York, February 12, 2010 - The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (NYSE: GS) today announced that Ruth J. Simmons has decided not to stand for re-election to the Board of Directors at the 2010 Annual Meeting of Shareholders as a result of increasing time requirements associated with her position as President of Brown University. Dr. Simmons has been a director of Goldman Sachs since January 2000. During that time, she served as a member of the Compensation Committee and the Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee.

“Ruth has made an enormous contribution to Goldman Sachs over the past 10 years,” said Lloyd C. Blankfein, Chairman and CEO of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. “Her intellectual rigor, insights and excellent judgment have proved invaluable to us during a period of great change. We will miss her as a member of our Board, but I am delighted that Goldman Sachs will continue to benefit from her guidance and expertise as Chair of the Advisory Board of our 10,000 Women initiative.”

The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. is a leading global financial services firm providing investment banking, securities and investment management services to a substantial and diversified client base that includes corporations, financial institutions, governments and high-net-worth individuals. Founded in 1869, the firm is headquartered in New York and maintains offices in London, Frankfurt, Tokyo, Hong Kong and other major financial centers around the world.

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