Report: German govt joins Goldman Sachs row

A newspaper has reported the German government may consider taking legal action in a case in which Goldman Sachs is accused of defrauding investors.

The US government alleges Goldman Sachs sold mortgage investments without telling buyers they were crafted with input from a client who was betting on them failing.

Buyers included German bank IKB Deutsche Industriebank AG – an early victim of the financial crisis that was rescued by the state-owned KfW development bank among others.

The Welt am Sonntag newspaper today quoted Chancellor Angela Merkel’s spokesman, Ulrich Wilhelm, as saying German regulator BaFin will ask the US Securities and Exchange Commission for information.

IKB spokeswoman Annette Littmann said the bank is aware of the charges filed by the SEC, but declined to comment further.