Goldman’s Ambition to Match JPMorgan on AT&T Deal Meets Reality

Goldman’s Ambition to Match JPMorgan on AT&T Deal Meets Reality

(Bloomberg) -- It would have been a coup for Goldman Sachs: Standing shoulder-to-shoulder with much larger rival JPMorgan Chase & Co. to split a $41.5 billion check financing AT&T Inc.’s mega media deal with Discovery Inc.

But by the time the transaction was announced Monday, Goldman would ultimately trim its commitment, largely due to regulatory restrictions, according to people with knowledge of the matter. JPMorgan and its monstrous $3.7 trillion balance sheet, meanwhile, covered the difference.

For most observers, it was a relatively small hiccup in a blockbuster deal heralding the return of jumbo takeovers while putting forth a challenger to the likes of Netflix and Disney. But for Goldman it underscored anew the hurdles it has to overcome when competing with massive commercial banks touting fortress balance sheets.