Goldman May Build Deposits via Web

Goldman Sachs, a recent convert to the commercial-banking world, reportedly is considering the creation of an Internet bank. The bank would accept deposits, offerings CDs and other products, according to some reports, augmenting its current deposit base of around $20 billion. Goldman was mum on the details, but it has chosen former Federal Reserve Bank of New York president Gerald Corrigan as chairman of its bank holding company.

The prospect of an online Goldman bank garnered support from analysts. “Consumers are actively looking to spread their deposits across firms,” according to Ron Shelvin, a senior analyst at Aite Group. “The online channel is a relatively low-cost channel for customer acquisition for products like CDs and savings accounts,” he adds. “Goldman Sachs will be able to immediately leverage their name recognition, which firms like ING Direct and Emigrant weren’t able to do when they entered the market.” Not only that: Goldman “doesn’t have the channel conflict issues that brick-and-mortar banks face when launching online-only products,” says Shevlin.