Contrarian Goldman grew fair-value bond book in 2022 despite yield surge

Held-to-maturity securities balloon, but bank also adds mark-to-market Treasuries as others curtail them

Goldman Sachs almost doubled its investment in bonds during 2022, breaking ranks with peers that sharply cut mark-to-market books as rising interest rates battered securities’ value.

The bank’s non-trading securities – virtually all US Treasuries – had an amortised-cost value of $104.1 billion as of end-December, up 92% from a year prior. In contrast, aggregate balances at the 13 other US lenders analysed by Risk Quantum slid 5%, or $270.7 billion, as managers sought to stem a capital