GOLDMAN SACHS

A rumor -- discovered to be a hoax -- that Facebook would shut down in March briefly lit up the blogosphere. There are reasons why a moment's thought shows this is wrong.

For all its dilution and exceptions, the Volcker Rule is no joke and has prompted the exodus of prop traders from big banks like Goldman Sachs.

Goldman Sachs' last large proprietary trading team is planning to leave the bank in order to start an independent hedge fund, the Financial Times reported on Sunday.

With rumours that Mark Zuckerberg has announced closure of the site, thousands are scurrying for answers on internet. Google Trends, Twitter and Yahoo Answers has been set on fire with the questions 'Is Facebook shutting down?'.

Stocks fell on Friday after a court ruling in a key foreclosure case prompted investors to pull out of bank stocks, adding to weakness after a lackluster jobs report.

JPMorgan Chase and Morgan Stanley received approval from Chinese regulators to form joint ventures with domestic firms, which would allow them to participate in underwriting Chinese stock and bond offerings.

Politicians now prefer to appoint JPMorgan executives to highly-visible positions rather than risk public outrage by choosing their Goldman Sachs counterparts.

Stocks fell on Friday after a court ruling in a key foreclosure case prompted investors to pull out of bank stocks, adding to weakness after a lackluster jobs report.

Facebook is generating profits at a faster-than-expected rate, and will likely attract so many investors this year that it will have to disclose financial data similar to a publicly traded company by April 2012, according to a document distributed by Goldman Sachs.

Interest in Facebook shares is so strong that Goldman Sachs Group Inc plans to stop soliciting interest from potential investors on Thursday, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the situation.

Facebook shares are hot, but they're starting to behave like publicly-traded shares, which has attracted the scrutiny of the SEC.

US market regulator Security and Exchange Commission began examining disclosure rules for privately held companies and whether they need to be rewritten following the recent deals that allowed investors to buy shares in Internet companies like Facebook and Twitter.

The efforts by Facebook to raise as much as $1.5 billion outside of regulated markets is the latest test of the walls between private and public markets.

Goldman Sachs is not giving its multimillionaire clients a lot of time or information to think about investing in a $1.5 billion Facebook private offering.

The change of guard in Brasilia at the turn of the new decade could also mark a shift in Brazil’s long-entrenched policy to go with China on monetary policy issues.

Does a company like Facebook that manufactures no tangible products and employs only about 2,000 people really be worth as much as $50-billion.

Goldman Sachs was the top global mergers and acquisitions adviser last year, retaking the position from rival Morgan Stanley, which derailed its multiyear grip on the ranking in 2009.

Facebook has raised $500 million from Goldman Sachs and Russian Internet investment group Digital Sky Technologies in a deal valuing the social networking site at $50 billion, the New York Times reported citing people involved in the transaction.

(Corrects beginning of third paragraph to read Apart from 2009... not 2010, as earlier sent)

Robert W. Baird & Co. CEO Paul Purcell speaks to IBTimes about his firm's performance during the financial crisis, navigating the financial services industry after the crisis, and the advantages of being a privately-held financial services firm.

South Africa is about to join the Brazil, Russia, India and China (BRIC) grouping and will attend the first summit of the leading emerging economies in April this year, but doubts remain over the suitability of the African nation to be in the exclusive club of the fast-growing economies.