Another Wall Street securities firm is taking its place on the hot seat today. The House Financial Services Committee says Goldman Sachs
The executives receiving IPO shares, according to the committee report, included eBay
The real issue here is how small investors were used as pawns at the height of the bubble. "These initial public offerings seemed to be anything but public," says Rep. Richard Baker (R-La.). "A small circle of preferred clients were given vast access by the investment banks to IPO shares and reaped large profits." Meanwhile, individuals had to wait until the shares were traded on the open market, usually at much higher prices.
Goldman vehemently denies the charges, calling the allegations "an egregious distortion of the facts." Whatever the specifics of this particular case, it's clear the IPO process was generally rigged to favor the fat cats at the expense of individual investors.