Promoting Economic Stability
For governments, now was the time to strengthen ties to capital markets
Providing governments, development banks and other public institutions with ready access to critical funds through capital markets has never been more important for global economic recovery. In 2011, amid market volatility, it was also a challenging task, making our role as a leading advisor and dealer in government securities all the more essential.
Among major transactions last year, one of the clear standouts was a €4 billion, 15-year benchmark offering executed for the European Union (EU). As a lead manager, we were able to draw upon resources from across the firm — from syndication, origination and market making — to achieve success at a critical moment. The offering enabled EU officials, under the European Financial
Stabilisation Mechanism, to finance crucial loans to the governments of Ireland and Portugal. The transaction did more than raise long-dated funding for the EU’s stabilization program. At a difficult moment in the sovereign debt crisis, it confirmed investor support for European sovereign credit as a whole.
Throughout 2011, roughly one-third of the capital we raised to support our European clients was for governments or public sector institutions. Goldman Sachs helped underwrite over 70 transactions for these public sector entities, including strategic benchmark offerings for the World Bank, the European Investment Bank, the United Kingdom, KfW (the German government’s development bank), and the Republics of Poland and Slovenia. In 2011, Goldman Sachs was a primary dealer in government securities for 13 European countries. Our sovereign debt franchise continues to expand into new markets.