KAUFMAN: I personally have a hard time believing that folks as smart as you guys didn’t see the housing market was having a bubble [in 2007]. And that the idea of going short was a good decision based on prudent managers looking at a market that was clearly falling apart.
Kaufman asked Viniar what Goldman Sach’s obligations were to its clients, and whether they should have stopped selling mortgage-backed CDO’s to them when Goldman itself was shorting them. Viniar didn’t see any apparent conflict of interest.
Goldman Sachs stock is up today.
KAUFMAN: I personally have a hard time believing that folks as smart as you guys didn’t see the housing market was having a bubble [in 2007]. And that the idea of going short was a good decision based on prudent managers looking at a market that was clearly falling apart.
Kaufman asked Viniar what Goldman Sach’s obligations were to its clients, and whether they should have stopped selling mortgage-backed CDO’s to them when Goldman itself was shorting them. Viniar didn’t see any apparent conflict of interest.
Goldman Sachs stock is up today.