• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

Jeff Bezos wants the bottom half of earners to pay zero income tax—he says nurses making just $75K should save $12K a year

2

Uber CEO says rideshare 'freed up' his son from having to get a driver’s license—and he's one of many Gen Zers who aren’t willing to drive

3

Inside the 'stealth wealth' playbook: How Silicon Valley's elite buy multimillion-dollar mansions without leaving a paper trail

1

Jeff Bezos wants the bottom half of earners to pay zero income tax—he says nurses making just $75K should save $12K a year

2

Uber CEO says rideshare 'freed up' his son from having to get a driver’s license—and he's one of many Gen Zers who aren’t willing to drive

3

Inside the 'stealth wealth' playbook: How Silicon Valley's elite buy multimillion-dollar mansions without leaving a paper trail
FinanceWall Street

Goldman Sachs’ Latest Product Has Gotten Wall Street In Trouble Before

Lucinda Shen
By
Lucinda Shen
Lucinda Shen
Down Arrow Button Icon
Lucinda Shen
By
Lucinda Shen
Lucinda Shen
Down Arrow Button Icon
October 31, 2016, 3:43 PM ET
Stocks Tumble As Greece's Ratings Downgraded To Junk Status
Chris Hondros — Getty Images

Goldman Sachs is trying to make an obscure and complex investment just a tad friendlier.

According to the Wall Street Journal, the dealmaker is, for the first time, allowing its competitors including TD Bank and Wells Fargo to sell structured notes on one of its existing web applications.

Structured notes are customizable investments that are typically tied to a run of the mill investment options, say the stock of computer maker Apple, but offer a higher interest income than buying Apple’s shares directly. The idea is to give investors upside exposure to a popular investment, while simultaneously providing the relative safety of a bond.

The network called Simon, which is short for a less approachable name, Structured Investment Marketplace and Online Network, allows brokers to both tweak and buy structured notes directly. Originally, brokers would have had to go back and forth with their clients, and then go back and forth with the note issuer, Goldman, to tweak a product. Now that can be theoretically done all at once on the platform.

Roughly 32 broker-dealers, including Raymond James, CIBC, TD Bank, and LPL Financial Holdings can use Simon, or create their own offerings on the Goldman Sachs application.

The bank though is still in talks with Morgan Stanley and J.P. Morgan to offer their products on Simon, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The issuers do pay a small fee to list on Simon, according to a person familiar with the matter to Fortune. That fee varies from firm to firm.

For Goldman, opening up Simon to clients and rivals is part of a firm-wide push toward becoming a tech-savvy bank. The bank opened up Simon to its clients and broker-dealers roughly two years ago. after rolling out its software platform, Marquee.

The play, is to make Simon to go-to for banks and dealers when trying to sell structured notes.

 

Goldman’s push into offering tech comes at a time when low interest rates and heavier regulations have been pressed on bank earnings. Goldman, like its peers, have reached into other areas for revenue. Earlier this year, Goldman launched its mass market online bank.

But the product in question, structured notes, have been under scrutiny in the past few years. In the first half of the year, structured note sales fell roughly a third since last year as a result of pending Department of Labor rules that in part supposed to require brokers to only sell clients products that are in their best interest, not ones that have the highest fees, according to StructuredRetailProducts.com.

Other regulatory agencies have also cracked down on the complex financial instrument in recent months. In late September, UBS was fined $19.5 million by the Securities and Exchange Commission for selling to product to consumers who had little experience with the notes. Merrill Lynch, Bank of America’s brokerage arm, also agreed to pay $10 million this year, for failing to disclose the risk associated with one of its structured note products.

In the run up to the financial crisis, a number of brokerage firms sold a type of structured note called revertables. When the stock market collapsed in late 2008 and early 2009, a number of investors ended up losing big, and some firms including Wells Fargo paid fines.

Since launching Simon in 2013, Goldman has jumped to No. 1 in structured note issuance from No. 4.

About the Author
Lucinda Shen
By Lucinda Shen
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Finance

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Finance

Top CD rates today, May 25, 2026: Lock in up to up to 4.30%
Personal FinanceBanks
Top CD rates today, May 25, 2026: Lock in up to up to 4.30%
By Glen Luke FlanaganMay 25, 2026
2 hours ago
The top high-yield savings rates: Up to 5.00% on May 25, 2026
Personal FinanceSavings accounts
The top high-yield savings rates: Up to 5.00% on May 25, 2026
By Glen Luke FlanaganMay 25, 2026
2 hours ago
Richard McCathron is President & CEO, Hippo.
CommentaryInsurance
I’m leading a $100 million corporate turnaround. Here’s why I learned to distrust the growth mindset
By Richard McCathronMay 25, 2026
3 hours ago
b
Economybaby boomers
The pig in the python: Baby Boomers are strangling the economy they built by refusing to move or retire
By Nick LichtenbergMay 25, 2026
4 hours ago
Current ARM mortgage rates report for May 22, 2026
Personal FinanceReal Estate
Current ARM mortgage rates report for May 22, 2026
By Glen Luke FlanaganMay 25, 2026
5 hours ago
Mortgage rates today, May 25, 2026
Personal Financemortgages
Mortgage rates today, May 25, 2026
By Glen Luke FlanaganMay 25, 2026
5 hours ago

Most Popular

Jeff Bezos wants the bottom half of earners to pay zero income tax—he says nurses making just $75K should save $12K a year
Success
Jeff Bezos wants the bottom half of earners to pay zero income tax—he says nurses making just $75K should save $12K a year
By Preston ForeMay 21, 2026
4 days ago
Uber CEO says rideshare 'freed up' his son from having to get a driver’s license—and he's one of many Gen Zers who aren’t willing to drive
Lifestyle
Uber CEO says rideshare 'freed up' his son from having to get a driver’s license—and he's one of many Gen Zers who aren’t willing to drive
By Sasha RogelbergMay 24, 2026
24 hours ago
Inside the 'stealth wealth' playbook: How Silicon Valley's elite buy multimillion-dollar mansions without leaving a paper trail
Real Estate
Inside the 'stealth wealth' playbook: How Silicon Valley's elite buy multimillion-dollar mansions without leaving a paper trail
By Sydney LakeMay 24, 2026
1 day ago
Indeed chief economist says we’re entering an era of ‘great mismatch’ thanks to a generational imbalance of workers
Success
Indeed chief economist says we’re entering an era of ‘great mismatch’ thanks to a generational imbalance of workers
By Emma BurleighMay 22, 2026
3 days ago
This 39-year-old quit his lineman job during the pandemic and built a $50 million company in his backyard
Success
This 39-year-old quit his lineman job during the pandemic and built a $50 million company in his backyard
By Nick LichtenbergMay 23, 2026
2 days ago
Bolt CEO says he let go of his entire HR team for creating problems that didn’t exist: ‘Those problems disappeared when I let them go’ 
Workplace Culture
Bolt CEO says he let go of his entire HR team for creating problems that didn’t exist: ‘Those problems disappeared when I let them go’ 
By Preston ForeMay 19, 2026
6 days ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.