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Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Agrees with Public Citizen that Goldman Sachs Misled Regulators About Connections with an Affiliate

  • 70 The number of shell company boards that the same three people served on with ties to Goldman Sachs.
  • Goldman Sachs Renewable Power The shell company that filed an application with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to sell electricity and claimed that it was not affiliated with Goldman Sachs
Goldman Sachs designed this private equity shell company with weak corporate governance to maximize the bank’s control, while simultaneously claiming that it had no control. Public Citizen’s strong advocacy gave FERC no other choice but to recognize the facts and label the companies affiliates, thereby closing a huge potential market manipulation loophole. Tyson Slocum, director of Public Citizen’s Energy Program

In December 2019, Public Citizen noticed that a private equity shell company calling itself Goldman Sachs Renewable Power claimed that it was not affiliated with the Wall Street banking titan Goldman Sachs in an application to sell electricity filed at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC).

Public Citizen then began an investigation into Goldman Sachs Renewable Power after it refused to disclose the names of its board members.

Public Citizen started digging and not only uncovered the names of the three board members, but connected them to nearly 70 shell companies associated with Goldman Sachs. Public Citizen then discovered that these three individuals worked for companies based in the Cayman Islands that provide “directors for hire” to private equity shell companies for Wall Street.

Public Citizen submitted this and other evidence in a series of filings at FERC. In late April, FERC issued an order agreeing with Public Citizen that Goldman Sachs Renewable Power wrongly misled regulators about an affiliation with The Goldman Sachs Group as part of its bid to sell electric power.

This is a victory for corporate accountability and consumer protection. Without this oversight, Wall Street will continue to be able to create private equity shell companies that are legally separate and more easily evade regulatory enforcement.

 

Highlights

  • In December 2019, Public Citizen noticed an application with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) from a corporation named Goldman Sachs Renewable Power that claimed it was not affiliated with Goldman Sachs.
  • Public Citizen launched an investigation, concluding that Goldman Sachs Renewable Power misled regulators about its connections with the affiliate which may have allowed it to amass greater profits.
  • Public Citizen submitted their evidence in a series of filings at FERC, which issued an order in late April agreeing that Goldman Sachs wrongly disclaimed their affiliation with The Goldman Sachs Group as part of its bid to sell electric power.