Goldman Sachs Group Inc may expand a program that would require executives to give a part of their pay to charity, as it looks to cool public anger over compensation, the New York Times reported on Sunday.

Goldman executives have been weighing the move for months, the paper reported, citing an unnamed source and said details of the plan were under discussion.

Under Goldman Sachs Gives, a program created in 2007, the firm's partners are required to give an undisclosed amount to charity each year, the paper said.

At the same time, Goldman is planning to further reduce the portion of revenue it sets aside for pay in the fourth quarter, the paper said.

The bank cut the ratio of compensation to revenue to about 43 percent in the third quarter from nearly half in the second. Still, Goldman has set aside nearly $17 billion in the first three quarters of 2009 for year-end compensation.

Goldman Sachs declined comment to Reuters on the report.

Compensation at U.S. banks has been a hot-button issue since the government handed them billions of dollars in bailout money, and firms have been looking for ways to defuse public outcry.

Last month, Goldman said it would pay top managers their 2009 bonuses in stock, rather than cash.

It has donated $200 million to the Goldman Sachs Foundation, its charitable arm.

It has also said it will contribute $500 million to programs that help small businesses. The advisory council for the initiative includes Chief Executive Lloyd Blankfein, billionaire investor Warren Buffett and Michael Porter of Harvard Business School.

(Reporting by Paritosh Bansal; Editing by Anshuman Daga)

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