Shares in Goldman Sachs, the US investment bank that priced its initial public offering (IPO) on Monday, soared more than 40 per cent in their first day of trading on the New York Stock Exchange.
Investors who missed out on the heavily oversubscribed IPO scrambled to buy the stock yesterday.
The shares opened at $76 (€71.7), up $23 from its IPO of $53, after Mr Hank Paulson, Goldman's chief executive officer, rang the opening bell at the NYSE. By midday they had dropped back to $72.371/2. Among the shareholders is partner Mr Peter Sutherland.
Mr Paulson said that, although it was a "momentous" day for Goldman, "from our vantage point spanning 130 years on Wall Street, the day also represents simply the continuation of our long and proud history of serving the needs of our clients".
He also noted that the firm had secured permanent capital to finance growth and access to the public markets to finance acquisitions.
The group has previously ruled out an acquisition of a retail brokerage or a large merger of equals, but is keen to expand in asset management and has taken several stakes in Internet companies.
The deal was more than 12 times oversubscribed. An estimated 70 per cent of the shares were sold to institutional investors, as Goldman tried to place the stock with long-term holders.
The IPO represents only 12.5 per cent of the company. Goldman is believed to have no plans to issue more stock.
