Goldman to pull out of Russia in Wall Street’s first exit from the country

Goldman to pull out of Russia in Wall Street’s first exit from the country

Goldman Sachs plans to pull out of Russia, the first major Wall Street group to confirm it will exit the country following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.

A swath of western companies have already pulled out of Russia in response to the war — Apple has suspended sales, accounting firms PwC and KPMG have cut ties, as have energy groups such as BP, Shell and Norway’s Equinor — but Goldman’s move is the most significant so far by a US bank.

“Goldman Sachs is winding down its business in Russia in compliance with regulatory and licensing requirements,” a spokeswoman for the bank said in an emailed statement on Thursday.

“We are focused on supporting our clients across the globe in managing or closing out pre-existing obligations in the market and ensuring the wellbeing of our people.”

Goldman has had a presence in Russia since 1998. Despite its decades there, the country makes up a small fraction of Goldman’s $2.8tn in assets and liabilities, with the bank disclosing last month that its exposure to credit losses in Russia was $650mn and its total market exposure was $414mn as of December.

New York-based Goldman, which employs close to 100 people in Russia where it has offered investment banking