Goldman Sachs settles lawsuit that alleged violations in platinum and palladium trading

By Steve Gelsi

Legal action filed in 2014 charged defendants with allegedly manipulating a benchmark for physical platinum and palladium prices

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. has reached a settlement in a 2014 class-action lawsuit that alleged illegal activity in platinum and palladium trading, according to a Friday filing.

Goldman Sachs (GS) said the parties reached a settlement in principle on April 19, but it did not disclose a dollar amount.

"The firm has reserved the full amount of its proposed contribution to the settlement," Goldman Sachs said in the filing.

A Goldman Sachs spokesperson did not comment.

Goldman Sachs said it was among the defendants named in a putative class-action lawsuit relating to trading in platinum and palladium.

"The amended complaint generally alleges that the defendants violated federal antitrust laws and the Commodity Exchange Act in connection with an alleged conspiracy to manipulate a benchmark for physical platinum and palladium prices," the filing said.

The lawsuit was filed on Nov. 25, 2014, and was most recently amended on May 15, 2017, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

The defendants were seeking declaratory and injunctive relief as well as an unspecified amount of damages, the filing said.

A motion to dismiss by the defendants was granted on March 29, 2020, but on Feb. 27, 2023, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reversed the district court's dismissal of certain plaintiffs' antitrust claims and vacated the district court's dismissal of the plaintiffs' Commodity Exchange Act claim.

The defendants then filed a petition to the U.S. Court of Appeals for a rehearing, but that request was denied on April 12, 2023.

Goldman Sachs's stock was up by 2.1% on Friday. The stock has gained 14.3% in 2024, compared with a 2.8% gain by the Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA.

-Steve Gelsi

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05-03-24 1010ET

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