Goldman Sachs wins suit over $1.2 billion Libyan fund losses

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. didn’t dupe Libyan officials into investments that lost $1.2 billion, a London court ruled, putting to rest claims the bank leveraged its reputation as well as lavish meals and escorts to win the sovereign wealth fund’s trust. The investment bank did not have “undue influence” over the Libyan Investment Authority when it pushed for what were ultimately money-losing derivative trades, and there is no evidence Goldman Sachs reaped excessive profits, Judge Vivien Rose said on Friday. The Libyan Investment Authority, a $60 billion oil wealth fund set up under former dictator Moammar Qaddafi, sued Goldman Sachs saying it was misled into signing derivative deals it never properly understood. The trades ended up being virtually worthless after the company shares they were linked to fell in the 2008 crisis. “Their relationship did not go beyond the normal cordial and mutually beneficial relationship that grows up between a bank and client,” Rose said in a written decision.