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A look at some must-read news on deals and deal makers around the world



Groupon valuation aiming for $15-billion

Coupon website Groupon is skyrocketing in valuation, recently raising $590-million and now eyeing a spring initial public offering that would give the company a valuation topping $15-billion (U.S.), The New York Times reported in its Dealbook. Groupon is holding a beauty contest right now to find banks to lead the offering, and those are the kind of valuation numbers being tossed around.





Did funds pay to play?

The Securities and Exchange Commission is digging around to see whether some banks, private equity funds and hedge funds improperly used payments to garner investments from sovereign wealth funds. The investigation was reported by The Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg News, Sovereign wealth funds are courted aggressively by fund managers because they have the ability to make big investments, generating big fees. The investigation is looking into whether any of that courting crossed the line into bribery.



Goldman had bigger crisis losses than it let on



Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lost $5-billion more on some investments in the financial crisis than it originally revealed. According to the Financial Times, the company unveiled the extra 2008 losses, which stemmed from investments in equity and debt, in a new filing as it tries to quiet critics.





It's a big bank world

The head of the German financial regulator is warning that only large banks will be able to survive under the new Basel rules on capital and risk, leading to "financial Darwinism."





Can the Winklevoss twins defeat Facebook?

The Winklevoss twins, who claim that they had the original idea for Facebook, and who are some of the more entertaining characters in the movie The Social Network, are seeking to have their original settlement with the company thrown out. The original settlement provided about $65-million, but the twins argue that the share portion was based on overvalued stock. Can they win? The Deal Professor over at New York Times Dealbook doubts it.













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Tickers mentioned in this story

Study and track financial data on any traded entity: click to open the full quote page. Data updated as of 28/03/24 7:00pm EDT.

SymbolName% changeLast
GS-N
Goldman Sachs Group
+0.59%417.69

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