Goldman Sachs & Company, one of the most storied institutions of capitalism and the arch underwriter of technology stocks, said on Monday its partners approved a proposal to take the firm public.
Goldman's 221 partners -- linked by teleconference early Monday morning -- endorsed a plan by the firm's management to revive the initial public offering it axed late last year in the face of market turmoil and bloodied profits.
In addition, the plan's main architect, co-chairman Jon Corzine, will quit the firm after the stock offering. A former bond trader who had championed selling stock representing a 10 to 15 percent stake in the 130-year-old partnership, will retire after the firm goes public, a statement said.
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Goldman in January stripped Corzine, 51, of his chief executive title and operational duties, after the firm reported an 81 percent drop in profits for the fourth quarter ended 27 November due to bond-trading losses. The management shuffle left co-chief executive Henry Paulson, a former investment banker, solely at the firm's helm.
"The completion of the public offering will mark a logical and appropriate point for me to move on in my career and life," Corzine said. "As of the closing of the offering, I will stand down from my remaining duties at the firm."
Analyst Michael Flanagan said Corzine quit because the firm wants to tone down its trading of stocks and bonds in favor of more stable sources of revenues, such as asset management and advisory fees. Corzine, known as a savvy trader, embodies the firm's trading side, Flanagan said.
"Corzine's [resignation] is the result of perhaps significant dissension among partners about the future course of Goldman's business. The essential question is the future role of trading."
