Exhibit 5.1
[Letterhead of Sullivan & Cromwell LLP]
August 18, 2023
The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc.,
200 West Street,
New York, New York 10282.
Ladies and Gentlemen:
We are acting as counsel to The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), in connection with the registration under the Securities Act of 1933 (the “Act”) of 1,500,000 depositary shares (the “Depositary Shares”), each representing a one-twenty-fifth (1/25th) interest in a share of the Company’s 7.50% Fixed-Rate Reset Non-Cumulative Preferred Stock, Series W, par value $0.01 per share and a liquidation preference of $25,000 per share (the “Preferred Shares”). The Company filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, on January 19, 2023, a registration statement on Form S-3 (File No. 333-269296), as amended on February 9, 2023 on Form S-3/A (the “Registration Statement”) under the Act relating to the proposed offer and sale of the Company’s preferred stock in the form of depositary shares, including the Preferred Shares and the Depositary Shares. The Depositary Shares are being issued pursuant to the Deposit Agreement, dated as of October 21, 2005, between the Company and HSBC Bank USA, National Association (as successor to The Bank of New York Mellon and JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A.), as Depositary (the “Depositary”), and the related Letter Agreement, dated as of October 18, 2012, between the Company and the Depositary, as amended by Amendment No. 1, dated as of June 17, 2019, between the Company and the Depositary (such Deposit Agreement, Letter Agreement and Amendment No. 1 to the Deposit Agreement, collectively, the “Deposit Agreement”). The Depositary Shares are evidenced by depositary receipts (“Depositary Receipts”) issued pursuant to the Deposit Agreement.
In rendering this opinion, we have examined the following documents:
| 1. | The Restated Certificate of Incorporation and the Amended and Restated By-Laws of the Company. |
| 3. | The Certificate of Designations of the Company, as filed with the Secretary of State of Delaware on August 16, 2023. |