Goldman Sachs: How Public Is This Ipo?

On May 4, Wall Street could talk of little else. The long-awaited Goldman Sachs Group initial public offering raised $3.6 billion, making it the second-largest IPO ever. The deal put the market capitalization of the 130-year-old investment bank at a healthy $33 billion. On the first trade, Goldman's freshly minted 69 million shares zoomed from 53 to 76 per share, before closing the day at 70 3/8. "Without any doubt, it was absolutely a stellar success," says one non-Goldman banker who was close to the deal. "To have priced this much paper--and as a nontechnology IPO--is incredible."

But don't be fooled. While Goldman is now public, it is still very much the same intensely private partnership that it has always been. To be sure, Goldman has a new GS stock symbol and the acquisition currency to execute its global ambitions. In fact, Goldman is set to launch a major corporate-image advertising campaign in the near future. But despite a new board of directors, Goldman will continue to be managed by its employees, for its employees--with a few public shareholders allowed to climb aboard for the ride. Says one insider: "We're going to let you in. Now shut up and sit back and we'll let you know how much you made."