Goldman Sachs has sold its Marcus loan portfolio, GreenSky consumer lending platform, and Personal Financial Management unit in a strategic exit from consumer banking that began in 2023. The sales, valued at over $3 billion combined, mark a complete reversal of the bank's retail ambitions launched in 2016.
JPMorgan will take over the Apple Card credit card program from Goldman in 2026, ending the partnership that began in 2019. Goldman's consumer division reportedly lost $3.8 billion between 2020 and 2022, with customer acquisition costs exceeding industry benchmarks.
The bank formed Capital Solutions Group in 2025 to consolidate institutional wealth management operations. Goldman announced acquisitions of Industry Ventures and Innovator Capital Management the same year, deploying capital previously allocated to consumer products into alternative investments and fund management.
Consumer loan servicing costs average $13,000 per origination at government-backed lenders Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Specialized fintech firms have reduced these costs through automation, creating structural disadvantages for universal banks without comparable scale in retail operations.
Creative Planning, which acquired Goldman's Personal Financial Management unit in 2023, manages $300 billion in client assets through technology-driven wealth management platforms. The firm's cost-to-income ratio runs 15-20 percentage points below traditional private banks by automating portfolio rebalancing and tax-loss harvesting.
Goldman's institutional business generated return on equity above 15% in 2024, compared to mid-single-digit returns in consumer banking. The bank's investment banking division advised on $1.2 trillion in M&A transactions in 2024, maintaining top-three global rankings.
The consumer banking retreat affects approximately 3,000 employees across lending, deposits, and wealth management units. Goldman reassigned 40% to institutional divisions, while buyers absorbed remaining staff through acquisition agreements.
Industry analysts project specialized financial service providers will capture 60% of new retail banking customers by 2028, up from 35% in 2023. Universal banks face pressure to achieve comparable automation efficiencies or exit segments where scale advantages have eroded.