Goldman Sachs sees a $1 billion opportunity in a business aimed at Main Street

Advertisement
Goldman Sachs sees a $1 billion opportunity in a business aimed at Main Street

FILE PHOTO - Goldman Sachs Chairman and CEO, Lloyd Blankfein, waits to speak at the 10,000 Women/State Department Entrepreneurship Program at the State Department in Washington, March 9, 2015.  REUTERS/Gary Cameron

Thomson Reuters

FILE PHOTO - Goldman Sachs Chairman and CEO, Lloyd Blankfein, waits to speak at the 10,000 Women/State Department Entrepreneurship Program at the State Department in Washington

Goldman Sachs, the financial services juggernaut, sees a big profit opportunity on Main Street.

Advertisement

Marcus, launched in October 2016, is the firm's first consumer lending platform. It's an online tool that offers fixed rate, no-fee personal loans of up to $30,000 for two- to six-year periods to borrowers with prime credit scores.

The firm sees a $1 billion opportunity in the new offering, according to a slideshow presentation by the bank's president and co-chief operating officer, Harvey Schwartz.

In the presentation, delivered at the Barclays Financial Services Conference on Tuesday, the firm outlined how it will "prudently grow" it lending business. Marcus, according to the bank, recently crossed $1 billion in loan origination and it expects that growth to continue with $2 billion in originations by year end.

Marcus is part of a broader strategy shift by the investment bank, which is best known for trading and investment banking.

Advertisement

It has been expanding its retail footprint, launching GSBank.com in April 2016. GSBank.com offers customers 1.20% interest rate on their deposits, which can be as low as $1, as well as 12 month- and 5 year-term CDs. The retail platform has $15 billion in deposits, according to the presentation.

Screen Shot 2017 09 12 at 10.18.35 AM

Goldman Sachs