Goldman Sacks: We'll no longer do business with 'White Male' owned companies

Goldman to Refuse IPOs If All Directors Are White, Straight Men

The era of the white, all-male board is coming to an end.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Chief Executive Officer David Solomon issued the latest ultimatum Thursday from Davos. Wall Street's biggest underwriter of initial public offerings in the U.S. will no longer do business with a company lacking a director who is either female or diverse.

The mandate is the latest in a series of signals that non-diverse boards and management are unacceptable. BlackRock Inc. and State Street Global Advisors are voting against directors at companies without a female director. Public companies with all-male boards based in California now face a $100,000 fine under a new state law.

After July, Goldman Sachs won’t work on a company’s IPO unless the board has at least one person who is not white, male or straight. Next year, the bank will raise the threshold to two diverse directors, Goldman said in a statement.

[link to www.bloomberg.com (secure)]