2matters on the record across its booking centres, 2018 to 2024
2.3/565 UHNW client ratings across its booking centres
The editor's opinion
Why Goldman Sachs rates 3.0 out of 5
Goldman Sachs rates 3.0 out of 5. Its three rated booking centres, in the United States, Switzerland and Hong Kong, all hold three stars, so weighting them by the UHNW client ratings each has received leaves the overall rating at the same level. Its booking entities carry two matters on the record, the most recent in 2024; each is listed below with the centre it concerns. Across its booking centres, 65 UHNW client ratings average 2.3 out of 5.
Noam Cohen, Editor, Bank IntelligenceReviewed 6 November 2026, Q4 2026 edition. Each booking centre is rated on its own file, from the public record and what clients and their advisers tell us in confidence. The overall rating brings those ratings together; retail products, branches and apps play no part.
Where Goldman Sachs stands out
Custody assets are protected by statute in the booking centre, with conditions a family should read. All centres
Deposits are covered by a statutory protection scheme. United States and Switzerland
Most fees are published. United States
Ownership and control are fully public. All centres
No politically exposed person holds a significant stake. All centres
No final adverse finding against this licence holder in ten years of regulatory and court records. Switzerland and Hong Kong
What to weigh
A significant regulatory finding stands on the record in the last ten years. United States
The last adverse finding is recent. United States
Only part of the private banking range is published for this booking unit. United States
No public policy on third-party payments or retrocessions. All centres
Remediation of past findings is not documented. United States
Custody terms are not published; ask for the agreement before opening an account. United States and Hong Kong
Only a summary of the custody terms is public. Switzerland
Few private banking services are published for this booking unit. Switzerland
No fee schedule is published; pricing is given on request. Switzerland and Hong Kong
The bank does not say whether it runs a desk for external asset managers. Switzerland and Hong Kong
Almost no private banking services are published for this booking unit. Hong Kong
The file does not yet confirm deposit protection for this booking unit. Hong Kong
United States · Goldman Sachs Bank USA37 client ratings · 57% of the weight
Switzerland · Goldman Sachs Bank AG12 client ratings · 18% of the weight
Hong Kong · Goldman Sachs Asia Bank Limited16 client ratings · 25% of the weight
PPLI.com rating, weighted across the centres3.0
Each booking centre keeps its own rating, set on its own file. The overall rating is the average of those ratings, weighted by the number of UHNW client ratings each centre has received. A centre whose rating is still in preparation is shown but not counted.
The rating expresses the opinion of PPLI.com on the date shown. It is not a statement of fact about the bank, not a credit rating, not a forecast of failure and not investment advice.
The booking centres
Goldman Sachs in 3 booking centres
Each booking centre is a separate legal entity, with its own licence, deposit protection, services and fees, and keeps its own PPLI.com rating. Everything on file for them is brought together on this page; open a centre for its own file.
What regulators, prosecutors and courts have decided against the booking entities of Goldman Sachs, gathered from the files of all its booking centres, with the status, the amounts as published and a link to the original document. Each entry names the centre it concerns. Claims and investigations still under way are marked as open.
202423 October 2024
Consent order over Apple Card dispute handling and misleading instalment plan statements
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau found that Goldman Sachs Bank USA mishandled Apple Card disputes, with late acknowledgements and resolution letters, disputed amounts reported to credit bureaus before resolution, inadequate investigations and consumers held liable before unauthorised use was investigated, and that it made deceptive statements about enrolment in and refunds under Apple Card Monthly Installments. The order requires the bank to pay a USD 45 million civil money penalty and USD 19.8 million in redress to consumers. Apple Inc. was separately ordered to pay a USD 25 million penalty.
Booking centre: United States · Goldman Sachs Bank USAConsumer Financial Protection BureauSettlement without admissionPenalty USD 45 millionNo termination published as at 6 November 2026 (the CFPB ended only Apple's companion order, on 22 September 2025)Primary source
201812 January 2018
Civil money penalty for a pattern of flood insurance violations
The Federal Reserve assessed a civil money penalty of USD 90,000 against Goldman Sachs Bank USA on 12 January 2018 for a pattern or practice of violations of the flood insurance rules in Regulation H (Docket No. 17-045-CMP-SM).
The Bank is assessed and shall pay a civil money penalty in the amount of $90,000.
Matters concerning other entities in the group (3)
202022 October 2020
Fed penalty: supervisory and risk control lapses connected with 1MDB
The Fed fined The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. USD 154 million for supervisory and risk control lapses connected with 1MDB. The release does not name Goldman Sachs Bank USA.
Shown for context only: it concerns the parent company.
The Federal Reserve Board on Thursday announced it has fined the Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. $154 million
The Goldman Sachs Group Inc. entered a DPA on a charge of conspiracy to violate the FCPA anti-bribery provisions and Goldman Sachs (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd. pleaded guilty in EDNY; Goldman agreed to pay over USD 2.9 billion in criminal penalty and disgorgement globally. Goldman Sachs Bank USA is not named. The Fed USD 154m penalty and foreign authorities' amounts overlap with the global figure and are not added to it.
Shown for context only: the parent's deferred prosecution agreement and the Malaysian subsidiary's guilty plea.
The Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (Goldman Sachs or the Company), a global financial institution headquartered in New York,
Reprimand and US$350 million (HK$2.71 billion) fine over the 1MDB bond offerings (2012 to 2013)
The SFC reprimanded and fined Goldman Sachs (Asia) L.L.C. US$350 million for serious lapses and deficiencies in its management supervisory, risk, compliance and AML controls that contributed to the misappropriation of US$2.6 billion from three 1MDB bond offerings. The respondent is the group's Hong Kong securities and investment banking entity, not Goldman Sachs Asia Bank Limited. Recorded for context only.
Shown for context only: it concerns a different company in the same group.
The Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) has reprimanded and fined Goldman Sachs (Asia) L.L.C. (Goldman Sachs Asia) US$350
What clients meet at Goldman Sachs across its booking centres, read from complaint registers, ombudsman decisions and court records, independent reporting and what clients and their advisers tell PPLI.com in confidence. Announcements by the bank, awards and marketing material are left out.
UHNW client ratings
2.3 out of 5, based on 65 client ratings across its booking centres.
United States1.4 out of 537 ratings
Switzerland3.7 out of 512 ratings
Hong Kong3.4 out of 516 ratings
What clients report
United States. The CFPB Consumer Complaint Database lists 22,010 complaints against Goldman Sachs Bank USA up to 6 November 2026. The count covers all customers of the bank, mostly retail, and is not specific to private wealth clients. The October 2024 CFPB order found late and inadequate handling of Apple Card disputes and unfair delays in resolving them, and required USD 19.8 million in redress. No claim by a private wealth client against the bank has reached a published judgment.
Switzerland. No complaints register publishes figures for Goldman Sachs Bank AG, and the Swiss Banking Ombudsman publishes statistics for the sector only, not by bank. No service failure, data breach or loss of client money at the Swiss bank has been reported in the independent press. The one court matter in the group's recent record, the 1MDB securities class action in New York, was brought by shareholders against the parent and is being settled.
Hong Kong. No client complaint, data incident or loss of client money naming the bank has been reported. The group's 1MDB resolutions of October 2020 named the parent, its Malaysian subsidiary and the Hong Kong licensed corporation Goldman Sachs (Asia) L.L.C., not the bank.
Worth raising with the bank
United States. Ask whether the dispute-handling failings found by the CFPB in October 2024 also affected card or payment disputes for private wealth clients, and what the bank changed afterwards.
Switzerland. Ask whether the bank has its own credit rating or a guarantee from The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., since the published ratings cover only the parent.
Hong Kong. Ask whether the bank has its own credit rating or a guarantee from The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., since the published ratings do not cover it.
Financial standing
Credit ratings published by the agencies for the companies named in the centre files, dated by the latest agency or bank document that confirms them
Free Malaysia Today, carrying a Bloomberg report, said on 23 April 2026 that The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. had agreed in principle to settle the 2018 shareholder class action over its 1MDB statements, with terms not disclosed.
JPMorgan Chase agreed to replace Goldman Sachs as issuer of the Apple Card in a deal valued at USD 2.2 billion according to CNBC, with a transition of about 24 months.
The Federal Reserve terminated its 2020 consent order on Goldman Sachs tied to 1MDB, which had required better risk management and oversight alongside a USD 154 million fine.
finews.com reported on 27 June 2025 that Pascal Meinherz was appointed General Manager of Goldman Sachs Bank AG, subject to regulatory approval, succeeding chief executive Dominique Wohnlich, who was leaving after six years.
The CFPB ordered Goldman Sachs to pay a USD 45 million penalty and Apple USD 25 million, plus USD 19.8 million in refunds, over mishandled Apple Card disputes and misleading claims about interest-free instalments.
What it costs
What Goldman Sachs charges, centre by centre
Fees are set by each booking entity, so they are shown centre by centre. One of the three centres of Goldman Sachs publishes a fee schedule, read on 6 November 2026 from the documents linked under each table. To compare banks fairly we put every published fee in US dollars at the same indicative rates and apply it to the same reference amounts, then rate each fee against the average of the other banks that publish it. Five stars is the lowest fee, one star the highest. Terms a family actually negotiates are often different, and a bank can change its schedule at any time.
Not in the published schedule: custody and safekeeping, discretionary mandate, advisory mandate, account maintenance, minimum annual fee, outgoing international transfer, transfer of securities to another bank, closing the account, lombard loan margin.
Third party payments. The schedule states: “We may receive compensation from mutual funds managers in the form of administrative, distribution or 12b-1 fees. Compensation received from mutual fund managers is passed onto clients in Goldman Sachs' discretion.”
No fee schedule is published for this booking centre.
Hong Kong · Goldman Sachs Asia Bank LimitedCentre file
Pricing not published
No fee schedule is published for this booking centre.
How the comparison works: USD 25 million booked with the bank: half under a discretionary balanced mandate, half in custody with advice; 24 equity trades of USD 250,000 and 8 bond trades of USD 500,000 a year; 6 currency conversions of USD 1 million; 24 outgoing international transfers. Tiered fees are applied to those amounts tranche by tranche, stated minimums are applied, and amounts are converted at indicative rates of 2026-11-06. Read how we compare fees.
The bank at a glance
Identity, protection and services
Ownership
Group parentThe Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (listed, NYSE) Source
ControlWidely held; no shareholder with 10% or more Source (31 March 2026)
Disclosed holdings of 3% or moreVanguard Capital Management 7.19% Source (31 March 2026)
Ownership is shown as published, with its date. It describes who owns the bank; it does not, by itself, suggest any wrongdoing by the bank or its owners.
Booking entities
United StatesGoldman Sachs Bank USAFederal Reserve (state member bank) and New York DFS · Locally incorporated subsidiary · LEI KD3XUN7C6T14HNAYLU02Licence: New York state-chartered bank, Fed member, FDIC cert 33124 Source
SwitzerlandGoldman Sachs Bank AGFINMA · Locally incorporated subsidiary · LEI S81F8KH474EY7PUWI149Licence: Bank and securities firm (the bank's page: 'a Swiss regulated Bank and Securities Dealer (Wertpapierhaus)') Source
Hong KongGoldman Sachs Asia Bank LimitedHKMA (restricted licence bank) · Locally incorporated subsidiary · LEI 5493007LAFON2CR3OD09Licence: Restricted licence bank, incorporated in Hong Kong Source
Financial strength, as reported
Credit ratingsMoody's A2 (stable outlook); S&P BBB+ (stable outlook); Fitch A (positive outlook) Rated entity: The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc.
Offered at one or more booking centresOffered by the group, not confirmed at a centreNot located, which does not mean unavailable Checked on the bank's own pages for each centre.
Access and costs
Minimum relationshipUnited States: USD 10 million Source Switzerland:Not published Hong Kong:Not published
US personsUnited States: Not published Switzerland: Not published Hong Kong: Not published
Fee scheduleUnited States: Published, July 2025 SourceCompared below Switzerland:Not published Hong Kong:Not published
Third party paymentsUnited States: Published Source Switzerland: Not published Hong Kong: Not published
Transfer out termsUnited States: Not published Switzerland: Not published Hong Kong: Not published
Protection of client assets
Deposit protectionUnited States: National banks are FDIC insured: USD 250,000 per depositor, per bank, for each ownership category. Securities are not deposits. Switzerland: All banks with a Swiss office must be members of esisuisse: privileged deposits are protected up to CHF 100,000 per client per bank, including non-resident clients and foreign currency deposits, within a system cap. Hong Kong: Not published
Custody lawUnited States: 12 CFR 9.13(b) requires a national bank to keep fiduciary account assets separate from the bank's own assets; securities at a broker-dealer are customer property under SIPA with SIPC protection. Re-use and lending are governed by account agreements and regulator rules rather than a single statute. Switzerland: Swiss Banking Act art. 37d: custody assets held for clients are separated from the bankrupt bank's estate and handed over to the clients, with privileged deposits protected under arts. 37a and 37h. Hong Kong: Client securities held by licensed or registered persons must be safeguarded under the Securities and Futures Ordinance and the Securities and Futures (Client Securities) Rules, as referenced in SFC Code of Conduct para 11.1.
Custody termsNot published
Before opening an account
Custody agreement. The applicable legal framework is set out above. Ask for the agreement that would govern your account and check how securities are titled, whether any sub-custodian is used, and when the bank may take a lien.
Reporting to the family office. The bank lists a desk for external asset managers. Ask for a sample statement or data export and confirm whether it includes positions, transactions, accrued income and all currencies held. United States
Currency conversion. The fee comparison shows a published maximum of 0.30% for the reference FX transaction. Ask for the spread on your usual currency pairs and trade sizes, with the benchmark rate named in the quote. See published fees. United States
Cross-border eligibility. If a settlor, beneficiary or beneficial owner has U.S. ties, ask the named entity to confirm eligibility for your structure and which investment services it can provide. Switzerland and Hong Kong
Transferring assets out. Ask which positions can be transferred without selling them, who approves exceptions, and how charges are calculated for each position and market. Switzerland and Hong Kong
Your experience
Rate Goldman Sachs
If you bank with Goldman Sachs in any of its booking centres, or advise clients who do, your experience forms part of its PPLI.com rating. Please say which centre you deal with. Every response is read by the editor and treated in strict confidence.
Before we publish a significant negative finding that is not already public, we give the bank the facts and time to comment, on the same timetable for every bank. Decisions of regulators and courts are shown as they were published. Corrections we verify are published with the date of the change. Write to [email protected] quoting the reference of the booking centre concerned: United States BK-US-GOLDMAN-BANK-806259; Switzerland BK-CH-GOLDMAN-SACHS-BANK-E2C104; Hong Kong BK-HK-GOLDMAN-HK-B966CF.
Reviewing this file with us
Families and their advisers read this file before they open an account. It can only be as complete as the documents we can find, and much of what sets a private bank apart, from its custody terms to the way a client team works, is rarely published.
If you represent Goldman Sachs, one of our Bank Intelligence analysts can go through the file with you: correct anything that is out of date, add terms and documents that are not yet public, and set out what has improved since our last edition. The review is a paid engagement for the analyst's time and research.
The rating itself stays with our editor and follows what the documents show, so we cannot promise a particular result. When a review changes the file, this page notes that the bank took part, with the date and what was added.
Brought together by the PPLI.com research desk from the files of its booking centres and the public sources listed. The rating is our editorial opinion; read how the overall rating is built.
Important information. Editorial opinion of PPLI.com on the date shown, based on public information, client experience and editorial judgment. Not a statement of fact, a credit rating or investment, legal, tax or financial advice; verify with the bank and your own advisers before acting. No liability is accepted for reliance on this content. Bank names and logos are used for identification only. Ratings are updated every quarter. This is the Q4 2026 edition, and a rating can change between editions if something material happens. Full disclaimer
Rating signed by Noam Cohen, Editor, Bank IntelligenceReviewed 6 November 2026Methodology 2.4Overall rating weighted by UHNW client ratings
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