US SEC investigating Goldman Sachs over employee communications

The Wall Street giant in a regulatory filing said it was cooperating with the SEC and providing the necessary documents required for the investigation. (File pic shows Goldman Sachs office in New York.)

NEW YORK: Goldman Sachs Group Inc said on Friday the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission was investigating it over employees using communication channels not approved by the company.

The Wall Street giant in a regulatory filing said it was cooperating with the SEC and providing the necessary documents required for the investigation.

The inquiry was first launched in October by the regulator to probe into how Wall Street banks and other large financial firms are keeping track of employees' digital communications.

The SEC has contacted several financial institutions to check whether employees' work-related communications such as messages and emails, particularly on personal devices, have been properly documented.

The industry-wide regulatory scrutiny comes at a time when companies have struggled with keeping track of staff communications in the work-from-home pandemic era.

In December, U.S. regulators fined J.P. Morgan Securities $200 million for "widespread" failures to preserve staff communications on personal mobile devices, messaging apps and emails.- Reuters