Deals
Goldman Lays Groundwork for China Future Without Owner Curbs
- China said on Friday it will relax foreign ownership limits
- Goldman’s JV partner said open to selling a controlling stake
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. headquarters stands in New York.
Photographer: Victor J. Blue/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
As China gets ready to allow foreign banks to take majority stakes in local securities joint ventures, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. has been quietly laying the groundwork for an onshore business in which it will have equity control.
Goldman Sachs’s business partner in China, Fang Fenglei, and his associates are open to selling a controlling stake in their local JV to the U.S. firm and the parties are negotiating a structure, according to people with knowledge of the talks. A key hurdle to the plan was removed on Friday after China said it would lift a 49 percent ownership cap on such ventures.