Filed Pursuant to Rule 424(b)(2)
Registration Statement No. 333-219206
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GS Finance Corp.
$6,277,000
Autocallable Index-Linked Notes due 2022
guaranteed by
The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc.
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The notes do not bear interest. The notes will
mature on the stated maturity date (February 2, 2022) unless they are automatically called on either call observation date (February 4, 2020 and January 28, 2021). Your notes will be automatically called on a call observation date if the closing
level of both the Russell 2000® Index and the S&P 500® Index on such date is greater than or
equal to (a) with respect to the first call observation date, 100% of their respective initial levels (the initial levels are 1,473.536 with respect to the
Russell 2000® Index and 2,643.85 with respect to the
S&P 500® Index) or (b) with respect to the
second call observation date, 95% of their respective initial levels, resulting in a payment on the corresponding call payment date equal to the face amount of your notes times (i) with respect to the first call observation date, 110.8% and (ii)
with respect to the second call observation date, 121.6%.
The amount that you will be paid on your note at maturity, if it has not
been automatically called, is based on the performance of the index with the lowest index return. The index return for each index is the percentage increase or decrease in
the final level of such index on the determination date (January 28, 2022) from its initial level.
At maturity, for each $1,000 face amount of your note, you will receive an amount in cash equal to:
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if the index return of both indexes is greater
than or equal to -10% (the final level of both indexes is greater than or
equal to 90% of their respective initial levels), $1,324; or
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if the index return of both indexes is greater
than or equal to -30% (the final level of both indexes is greater than or
equal to 70% of its respective initial level) but the index return of either index is less
than -10% (the final level of either index is less than 90% of its respective initial level), $1,000; or
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if the index return of either index is less
than -30% (the final level of either index is less than 70% of its initial
level), the sum of (i) $1,000 plus (ii) the product of (a) the lesser performing index return times (b) $1,000. You will receive less than 70% of the face amount of your note.
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If the index return for either index is less
than -30%, the percentage of the face amount of your note you will receive will be based on the performance of the index with the lowest index return. In such event,
you will receive less than 70% of the face amount of your note.
You should read the disclosure herein to better understand the terms and risks of your investment, including the credit risk of GS Finance Corp. and The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. See page S-10.
The estimated value of your notes at the time the terms of your notes are set on the trade date is equal to
approximately $967 per $1,000 face amount. For a discussion of the estimated value and the price at which Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC would initially buy or sell your notes, if it makes a market in the notes, see the following page.
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Original issue date:
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January 31, 2019
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Original issue price:
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100% of the face amount
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Underwriting discount:
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2.5% of the face amount*
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Net proceeds to the issuer:
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97.5% of the face amount
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*This includes a selling concession of up to 2.25%.
Neither the Securities and Exchange Commission nor any other regulatory body has approved or
disapproved of these securities or passed upon the accuracy or adequacy of this prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense. The notes are not
bank deposits and are not insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other governmental agency, nor are they obligations of, or guaranteed by, a bank.
Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC
Prospectus Supplement No. 4,983 dated January 28, 2019.
The issue price, underwriting discount and net proceeds listed above relate to the notes we sell initially. We may decide to sell additional notes
after the date of this prospectus supplement, at issue prices and with underwriting discounts and net proceeds that differ from the amounts set forth above. The return (whether positive or negative) on your investment in notes will depend in part
on the issue price you pay for such notes.
GS Finance Corp. may use this prospectus in the initial sale of the notes. In addition, Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC or any other
affiliate of GS Finance Corp. may use this prospectus in a market-making transaction in a note after its initial sale. Unless GS Finance Corp. or its
agent informs the purchaser otherwise in the confirmation of sale, this prospectus is being used in a market-making transaction.
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Estimated Value of Your Notes
The estimated value of your notes at the time the terms of your notes are set on the trade date (as determined by reference to pricing models used by Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC (GS&Co.) and
taking into account our credit spreads) is equal to approximately $967 per $1,000 face amount, which is less than the original issue price. The value of
your notes at any time will reflect many factors and cannot be predicted; however, the price (not including GS&Co.’s customary bid and ask spreads) at
which GS&Co. would initially buy or sell notes (if it makes a market, which it is not obligated to do) and the value that GS&Co. will initially
use for account statements and otherwise is equal to approximately the estimated value of your notes at the time of pricing, plus an additional amount (initially equal to $28 per $1,000 face amount).
Prior to January 28, 2020, the price (not including GS&Co.’s customary bid and ask spreads)
at which GS&Co. would buy or sell your notes (if it makes a market, which it is not obligated to do) will equal approximately the sum of (a) the then-current estimated value of your notes (as determined by reference to
GS&Co.’s pricing models) plus (b) any remaining additional amount (the additional amount will decline to zero on a straight-line basis from the time of pricing through January 27, 2020). On and after January 28, 2020, the price
(not including GS&Co.’s customary bid and ask spreads) at which GS&Co. would buy or sell your notes (if it makes a market) will equal approximately the then-current estimated value of your notes determined by reference to such
pricing models.
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About Your Prospectus
The notes are part of the Medium-Term Notes, Series E program of GS Finance Corp., and are fully and unconditionally
guaranteed by The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. This prospectus includes this prospectus supplement and the accompanying documents listed below. This prospectus supplement constitutes a supplement to the documents listed below and
should be read in conjunction with such documents:
The information in this prospectus supplement supersedes any conflicting information in the documents listed above. In addition, some
of the terms or features described in the listed documents may not apply to your notes.
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We refer to the notes we are offering by this prospectus supplement as the “offered notes” or the
“notes”. Each of the offered notes has the terms described below and under “Specific Terms of Your Notes” on page S-20. Please note that in this prospectus supplement, references to “GS Finance Corp.”, “we”, “our” and “us” mean only
GS Finance Corp. and do not include its subsidiaries or affiliates, references to “The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc.”, our parent company, mean only The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. and do not include its subsidiaries or affiliates and
references to “Goldman Sachs” mean The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. together with its consolidated subsidiaries and affiliates, including us. Also, references to the “accompanying prospectus” mean the accompanying prospectus, dated July
10, 2017, and references to the “accompanying prospectus supplement” mean the accompanying prospectus supplement, dated July 10, 2017, for Medium-Term Notes, Series E, in each case of GS Finance Corp. and The Goldman Sachs Group,
Inc. References to the “indenture” in this prospectus supplement mean the senior debt indenture, dated as of October 10, 2008, as supplemented by the First Supplemental Indenture, dated as of February 20, 2015, each among us, as
issuer, The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., as guarantor, and The Bank of New York Mellon, as trustee. This indenture, as so supplemented and as further supplemental thereafter, is referred to as the “GSFC 2008 indenture” in the
accompanying prospectus supplement.
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Key Terms
Issuer: GS Finance Corp.
Guarantor: The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc.
Indices: the Russell 2000® Index (Bloomberg symbol, “RTY
Index”), as published by FTSE Russell (“Russell”), and the S&P 500® Index (Bloomberg symbol, “SPX Index”), as published by S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC; see “The Indices”
on page S-29
Specified currency: U.S. dollars (“$”)
Face amount: each note will have a face amount equal to $1,000;
$6,277,000 in the aggregate for all the offered notes; the aggregate face amount of the offered notes may be increased if the issuer, at its sole option, decides to sell an additional amount of the offered notes on a date subsequent to the date
of this prospectus supplement
Denominations: $1,000 and integral multiples of $1,000 in excess
thereof
Purchase at amount other than face amount: the amount
we will pay you for your notes on a call payment date or the stated maturity date, as the case may be, will not be adjusted based on the issue price you pay for your notes, so if you acquire notes at a premium (or discount) to face amount and hold them to a call payment date or the stated maturity date, it could affect your
investment in a number of ways. The return on your investment in such notes will be lower (or higher) than it would have been had you purchased the notes at face amount. See “Additional Risk
Factors Specific to Your Notes — If You Purchase Your Notes at a Premium to Face Amount, the
Return on Your Investment Will Be Lower Than the Return on Notes Purchased at Face Amount and the Impact of Certain Key Terms of the Notes Will Be Negatively Affected” on
page S-13 of this prospectus supplement
Supplemental discussion of U.S. federal income tax
consequences: you will be obligated pursuant to the terms of the notes — in the absence of a change in law, an administrative determination or a judicial ruling to the contrary — to characterize each note for all tax purposes as a
pre-paid derivative contract in respect of the indices, as described under “Supplemental Discussion of U.S. Federal Income Tax Consequences” herein. Pursuant to this approach, it is the opinion of Sidley Austin llp that upon the sale, exchange, redemption or maturity of your notes, it would be
reasonable for you to recognize capital gain or loss equal to the difference, if any, between the amount of cash you receive at such time and your tax basis in your notes.
Automatic call feature: if the closing levels of both indices are greater than or equal
to (a) 100% of their respective initial index levels on the first call observation date or (b) 95% of their respective initial index levels on the second call observation date, your notes will be automatically called; if your notes are
automatically called on any call observation date, on the corresponding call payment date, you will receive an amount in cash equal to the sum of (i) $1,000 plus (ii) the product of $1,000 times the call premium amount applicable to the corresponding call observation date for each $1,000 face amount of your notes.
Cash settlement amount (on any call payment date): if your notes are
automatically called on a call observation date because the closing levels of both indices are greater than or equal to (a) 100.00% of their respective initial index levels on the first call observation date or (b) 95.00% of their respective initial index levels on the second call observation date, for each $1,000 face amount
of your notes, on the related call payment date, we will pay you an amount in cash equal to the sum of (i) $1,000 plus (ii) the product of $1,000 times the call premium
amount applicable to the corresponding call observation date.
Cash settlement amount (on the stated maturity date): if your notes
are not automatically called, for each $1,000 face amount of your notes, we will pay you on the stated maturity date an amount in cash equal to:
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if the index return of both indices is greater
than or equal to -10%, the sum of (i) $1,000 plus (ii) the product of $1,000 times the maturity date premium amount; or
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if the index return of both indices is greater
than or equal to -30% but the index return of either index is less than -10%,
$1,000; or
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if the index return of either index is less
than -30%, the sum of (i) $1,000 plus (ii) the product of (a) the lesser performing index return times (b) $1,000. You will receive less than 70% of the face amount of your note
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Lesser performing index return: the index return of the lesser
performing index
Lesser performing index: the index with the lowest index return
Call premium amount: 10.8% with respect to the first
scheduled call observation date and 21.6% with respect to the second scheduled call observation date
Maturity date premium amount: 32.4%
Initial index level: 1,473.536 with respect to the Russell 2000®
Index and 2,643.85 with respect to the S&P 500® Index
Final index level: with respect to each index, the closing level of such index on the determination date, except in the limited circumstances described under “Specific Terms of Your Notes — Consequences of a Market
Disruption Event or a Non-Trading Day” on page S-23
Closing level: with respect to each index on any trading day, the
closing level of such index, as further described under “Specific Terms of Your Notes — Special Calculation Provisions — Closing Level” on page S-25
Index return: with respect to each index on the determination date,
the quotient of (i) the final index level minus the initial index level divided by (ii) the initial index level, expressed as a positive or negative percentage
Defeasance: not applicable
No listing: the offered notes will not be listed or displayed on any
securities exchange or interdealer market quotation system
Business day: as described under “Specific Terms of
Your Notes — Special Calculation Provisions” on page S-25
Trading day: as described under “Specific Terms of Your Notes —
Special Calculation Provisions” on page S-25
Trade date: January 28, 2019
Original issue date (settlement date): January 31, 2019
Stated maturity date: February 2, 2022, subject to adjustment as
described under “Specific Terms of Your Notes — Payment of Principal on Stated Maturity Date — Stated Maturity Date” on page S-22
Determination date: January 28, 2022, subject to adjustment as described under “Specific
Terms of Your Notes — Determination Date” on page S-22
Call observation dates: February 4, 2020 and January 28, 2021, subject
to adjustment as described under “Specific Terms of Your Notes — Call Observation Dates” on page S-22
Call payment dates: the third business day after the corresponding
call observation date, subject to adjustment as described under “Specific Terms of Your Notes — Call Payment Dates” on page S-23
Regular record dates: the scheduled business day immediately preceding
the day on which payment is made (as such payment date may be adjusted)
Calculation agent: Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC (“GS&Co.”)
CUSIP no.: 40056EQQ4
ISIN no.: US40056EQQ43
FDIC: the notes are not bank deposits and are not insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance
Corporation or any other governmental agency, nor are they obligations of, or guaranteed by, a bank
The following examples are provided for purposes of illustration only. They should not be taken as an indication
or prediction of future investment results and are intended merely to illustrate (i) the impact that various hypothetical closing levels of the indices on a call observation date and on the determination date could have on the cash settlement
amount on a call payment date or on the stated maturity date, as the case may be, assuming all other variables remain constant.
The examples below are based on a range of index levels that are entirely hypothetical; no one can predict what
the index level of either index will be on any day throughout the life of your notes, what the closing level of either index will be on any call observation date, and what the final index level of the lesser performing index will be on the
determination date. The indices have been highly volatile in the past — meaning that the index levels have changed substantially in relatively short periods — and their performance cannot be predicted for any future period.
The information in the following examples reflects hypothetical rates of return on the offered notes assuming
that they are purchased on the original issue date at the face amount and held to a call payment date or the stated maturity date, as the case may be. If you sell your notes in a secondary market prior to a call payment date or the stated
maturity date, as the case may be, your return will depend upon the market value of your notes at the time of sale, which may be affected by a number of factors that are not reflected in the examples below such as interest rates, the volatility
of the indices, the creditworthiness of GS Finance Corp., as issuer, and the creditworthiness of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., as guarantor. In addition, the estimated value of your notes at the time the terms of your notes are set on the trade
date (as determined by reference to pricing models used by GS&Co.) is less than the original issue price of your notes. For more information on the estimated value of your notes, see “Additional Risk Factors Specific to Your Notes — The
Estimated Value of Your Notes At the Time the Terms of Your Notes Are Set On the Trade Date (as Determined By Reference to Pricing Models Used By GS&Co.) Is Less Than the Original Issue Price Of Your Notes” on page S-10 of this prospectus
supplement. The information in the examples also reflects the key terms and assumptions in the box below.
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Key Terms and Assumptions
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Face amount
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$1,000
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Call premium amount
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10.8% for the first call observation date
21.6% for the second call observation date
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Maturity date premium amount
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32.4%
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The notes are not automatically called, unless otherwise indicated below
Neither a market disruption event nor a non-trading day occurs on any originally scheduled call observation date or the originally scheduled
determination date
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No change in or affecting any of the index stocks or the method by which the applicable index sponsor calculates either index
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Notes purchased on original issue date at the face amount and held to a call payment date or the stated maturity date
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For these reasons, the actual performance of the indices over the life of your notes, as well as the amount
payable on a call payment date or at maturity, if any, may bear little relation to the hypothetical examples shown below or to the historical index levels shown elsewhere in this prospectus supplement. For information about the index levels
during recent periods, see “The Indices — Historical Closing Levels of the Indices” on page S-43. Before investing in the notes, you should consult publicly available information to determine the index levels between the date of this prospectus
supplement and the date of your purchase of the notes.
Also, the hypothetical examples shown below do not take into account the effects of applicable taxes. Because
of the U.S. tax treatment applicable to your notes, tax liabilities could affect the after-tax rate of return on your notes to a comparatively greater extent than the after-tax return on the index stocks.
Hypothetical Payment on a Call Payment Date
If your notes are automatically called on the first call observation date (i.e., on the
first call observation date the closing levels of both indices are greater than or equal to
100.000% of their respective initial index levels), the cash settlement amount that we would deliver for each $1,000 face amount of your notes on the applicable call payment date would be the sum of $1,000 plus the product of the applicable call
premium amount times $1,000. If, for example, the closing level of each index was determined to be 125.000% of its respective initial index level, your notes would be
automatically called and the cash settlement amount that we would deliver on your notes on the corresponding call payment date would be 110.800% of the face amount of your notes or $1,108 for each $1,000 of the face amount of your notes.
If the notes are not automatically called on the first call observation date and are automatically called on the
second call observation date (i.e., on the first call observation date the closing level of either index is less than 100.000% of its respective initial index
level, and on the second call observation date the closing levels of both indices are greater than or equal to 95.000% of their respective initial index levels), the cash settlement amount that we would deliver for each $1,000 face amount of your notes on the applicable call payment date would be the sum of $1,000 plus the product of
the applicable call premium amount times $1,000. If, for example, the closing level of each index was determined to be 125.000% of its respective initial index level,
your notes would be automatically called and the cash settlement amount that we would deliver on your notes on the corresponding call payment date would be 121.600% of the face amount of your notes or $1,216 for each $1,000 of the face amount of
your notes.
Hypothetical Payment at Maturity
If the notes are not automatically called on any call observation date (i.e., on the first call observation date the closing level of
either index is less than 100.000% of its respective initial index level and on the second call observation date the closing level of either index is less than 95.000% of its respective initial index level), the cash settlement amount we would deliver for each $1,000 face amount of your notes on the stated maturity date
will depend on the performance of the lesser performing index on the determination date, as shown in the table below. The table below assumes that the notes have not been automatically called on a call observation date and reflects hypothetical cash
settlement amounts that you could receive on the stated maturity date.
The levels in the left column of the table below represent hypothetical final index levels of the lesser performing index and are expressed as
percentages of the initial index level of the lesser performing index. The amounts in the right column represent the hypothetical cash settlement amounts, based on the corresponding hypothetical final index level of the lesser performing index
(expressed as a percentage of the initial index level of the lesser performing index), and are expressed as percentages of the face amount of a note (rounded to the nearest one-thousandth of a percent). Thus, a hypothetical cash settlement
amount of 100.000% means that the value of the cash payment that we would deliver for each $1,000 of the outstanding face amount of the offered notes on the stated maturity date would equal 100.000% of the face amount of a note, based on the
corresponding hypothetical final index level of the lesser performing index (expressed as a percentage of the initial index level of the lesser performing index) and the assumptions noted above.
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The Notes Have Not Been Automatically Called
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Hypothetical Final Index Level of the
Lesser Performing Index
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Hypothetical Cash Settlement Amount
at Maturity if the Notes Have Not Been
Automatically Called on a Call
Observation Date
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(as Percentage of Initial Index Level)
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(as Percentage of Face Amount)
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175.000%
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132.400%
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150.000%
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132.400%
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125.000%
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132.400%
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100.000%
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132.400%
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90.000%
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132.400%
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89.999%
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100.000%
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80.000%
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100.000%
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70.000%
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100.000%
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69.999%
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69.999%
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50.000%
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50.000%
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25.000%
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25.000%
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10.000%
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10.000%
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0.000%
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0.000%
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If, for example, the notes have not been automatically
called on a call observation date and the final index level of the lesser performing index were determined to be 25.000% of its initial index level, the cash settlement amount that we would deliver on your notes at maturity would be 25.000% of
the face amount of your notes, as shown in the table above. As a result, if you purchased your notes on the original issue date at the face amount and held them to the stated maturity date, you would lose 75.000% of your investment (if you
purchased your notes at a premium to face amount you would lose a correspondingly higher percentage of your investment). In addition, if the final index level of the lesser performing index were determined to be 175.000% of its initial index
level, the cash settlement amount that we would deliver on your notes at maturity would be limited to 132.400% of each $1,000 face amount of your notes, as shown in the table above. As a result, if you held your notes to the stated maturity
date, the cash settlement amount will be capped, and you would not benefit from any increase in the final index level over 90.000% of the initial index level.
The cash settlement amounts shown above are entirely hypothetical; they are based on market prices for the index
stocks that may not be achieved on the determination date and on assumptions that may prove to be erroneous. The actual market value of your notes on the stated maturity date or at any other time, including any time you may wish to sell your
notes, may bear little relation to the hypothetical cash settlement amounts shown above, and these amounts should not be viewed as an indication of the financial return on an investment in the offered notes. The hypothetical cash settlement
amounts on notes held to the stated maturity date in the examples above assume you purchased your notes at their face amount and have not been adjusted to reflect the actual issue price you pay for your notes. The return on your investment
(whether positive or negative) in your notes will be affected by the amount you pay for your notes. If you purchase your notes for a price other than the face amount, the return on your investment will differ from, and may be significantly lower
than, the hypothetical returns suggested by the above examples. Please read “Additional Risk Factors Specific to Your Notes — The Market Value of Your Notes May Be Influenced by Many Unpredictable Factors” on page S-12.
Payments on the notes are economically equivalent to the amounts that would be paid on a combination of other instruments. For example, payments on
the notes are economically equivalent to a combination of an interest-bearing bond bought by the holder and one or more options entered into between the holder and us (with one or more implicit option premiums paid over time). The discussion in
this paragraph does not modify or affect the terms of the notes or the U.S. federal income tax treatment of the notes, as described elsewhere in this prospectus supplement.
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We cannot predict the actual closing levels of the indices on any day, the final index levels of the
indices or what the market value of your notes will be on any particular trading day, nor can we predict the relationship between the closing levels of the indices and the market value of your notes at any time prior to the stated
maturity date. The actual amount that you will receive on a call payment date or the stated maturity date, if any, and the rate of return on the offered notes will depend on whether or not the notes are automatically called and on the
actual closing levels of the indices on the call observation dates and the actual final index levels determined by the calculation agent as described above. Moreover, the assumptions on which the hypothetical examples are based may
turn out to be inaccurate. Consequently, the cash amount to be paid in respect of your notes on a call payment date or the stated maturity date, as applicable, may be very different from the information reflected in the examples
above.
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An investment in your notes is subject to the risks described below, as well as the risks and
considerations described in the accompanying prospectus and in the accompanying prospectus supplement. You should carefully review these risks and considerations as well as the terms of the notes described herein and in the
accompanying prospectus and the accompanying prospectus supplement. Your notes are a riskier investment than ordinary debt securities. Also, your notes are not equivalent to investing directly in the index stocks, i.e., with respect
to an index to which your notes are linked, the stocks comprising such index. You should carefully consider whether the offered notes are suited to your particular circumstances.
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The Estimated Value of Your Notes At the Time the Terms of Your Notes Are Set On the Trade Date (as Determined
By Reference to Pricing Models Used By GS&Co.) Is Less Than the Original Issue Price Of Your Notes
The original issue price for your notes exceeds the estimated value of your notes as of the time the terms of
your notes are set on the trade date, as determined by reference to GS&Co.’s pricing models and taking into account our credit spreads. Such estimated value on the trade date is set forth above under “Estimated Value of Your Notes”; after the
trade date, the estimated value as determined by reference to these models will be affected by changes in market conditions, the creditworthiness of GS Finance Corp., as issuer, the creditworthiness of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., as guarantor,
and other relevant factors. The price at which GS&Co. would initially buy or sell your notes (if GS&Co. makes a market, which it is not obligated to do), and the value that GS&Co. will initially use for account statements and
otherwise, also exceeds the estimated value of your notes as determined by reference to these models. As agreed by GS&Co. and the distribution participants, this excess (i.e., the additional amount described under “Estimated Value of Your
Notes”) will decline to zero on a straight line basis over the period from the date hereof through the applicable date set forth above under “Estimated Value of Your Notes”. Thereafter, if GS&Co. buys or sells your notes it will do so at
prices that reflect the estimated value determined by reference to such pricing models at that time. The price at which GS&Co. will buy or sell your notes at any time also will reflect its then current bid and ask spread for similar sized
trades of structured notes.
In estimating the value of your notes as of the time the terms of your notes are set on the trade date, as
disclosed above under “Estimated Value of Your Notes”, GS&Co.’s pricing models consider certain variables, including principally our credit spreads, interest rates (forecasted, current
and historical rates), volatility, price-sensitivity analysis and the time to maturity of the notes. These pricing models are proprietary and rely in part on certain assumptions about future events, which may prove to be incorrect. As a result,
the actual value you would receive if you sold your notes in the secondary market, if any, to others may differ, perhaps materially, from the estimated value of your notes determined by reference to our models due to, among other things, any
differences in pricing models or assumptions used by others. See “— The Market Value of Your Notes May Be Influenced by Many Unpredictable Factors” below.
The difference between the estimated value of your notes as of the time the terms of your notes are set on the
trade date and the original issue price is a result of certain factors, including principally the underwriting discount and commissions, the expenses incurred in creating, documenting and marketing the notes, and an estimate of the difference
between the amounts we pay to GS&Co. and the amounts GS&Co. pays to us in connection with your notes. We pay to GS&Co. amounts based on what we would pay to holders of a non-structured note with a similar maturity. In return for such
payment, GS&Co. pays to us the amounts we owe under your notes.
In addition to the factors discussed above, the value and quoted price of your notes at any time will reflect many factors and
cannot be predicted. If GS&Co. makes a market in the notes, the price quoted by GS&Co. would reflect any changes in market conditions and other relevant factors, including any deterioration in our creditworthiness or perceived
creditworthiness or the creditworthiness or perceived creditworthiness of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. These changes may adversely affect the value of your notes, including the price you may receive for your notes in any market making
transaction. To the
extent that GS&Co. makes a market in the notes, the quoted price will reflect the estimated value determined by reference to
GS&Co.’s pricing models at that time, plus or minus its then current bid and ask spread for similar sized trades of structured notes (and subject to the declining excess amount
described above).
Furthermore, if you sell your notes, you will likely be charged a commission for secondary market transactions,
or the price will likely reflect a dealer discount. This commission or discount will further reduce the proceeds you would receive for your notes in a secondary market sale.
There is no assurance that GS&Co. or any other party will be willing to purchase your notes at any price
and, in this regard, GS&Co. is not obligated to make a market in the notes. See “— Your Notes May Not Have an Active Trading Market” below.
The Notes Are Subject to the Credit Risk of the Issuer and the Guarantor
Although the return on the notes will be based on the performance of each index, the payment of any amount due
on the notes is subject to the credit risk of GS Finance Corp., as issuer of the notes, and the credit risk of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., as guarantor of the notes . The notes are our unsecured obligations. Investors are dependent on our
ability to pay all amounts due on the notes, and therefore investors are subject to our credit risk and to changes in the market’s view of our creditworthiness. Similarly, investors are dependent on the ability of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc.,
as guarantor of the notes, to pay all amounts due on the notes, and therefore are also subject to its credit risk and to changes in the market’s view of its creditworthiness. See “Description of the Notes We May Offer — Information About Our
Medium-Term Notes, Series E Program — How the Notes Rank Against Other Debt” on page S-4 of the accompanying prospectus supplement and “Description of Debt Securities We May Offer— Guarantee by The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc.” on page 42 of the
accompanying prospectus.
You May Lose Your Entire Investment in the Notes
You can lose your entire investment in the notes. Assuming your notes are not automatically called, the cash
settlement amount on your notes, if any, on the stated maturity date will be based on the performance of the lesser performing of the Russell 2000® Index and the S&P 500® Index as measured from their initial index levels to their closing
levels on the determination date. If the index return of either index is less than -30.00%, you will have a loss for each $1,000 of the face amount of your notes equal to the product of the lesser performing index return times $1,000. Thus, you may lose your entire investment in the notes, which would include
any premium to face amount you paid when you purchased the notes.
Also, the market price of your notes prior to a call
payment date or the stated maturity date, as the case may be, may be significantly lower than the purchase price you pay for your notes. Consequently, if you sell your notes before the stated maturity date, you may receive far less than the
amount of your investment in the notes.
The Cash Settlement Amount You Will Receive on a Call Payment Date or on the Stated Maturity Date, as the Case May Be, Will Be
Capped
Regardless of the closing levels of the indices on each of the call observation dates, the cash settlement
amount you may receive on a call payment date is capped. Even if the closing levels of both indices exceed (a) 100.00% of their respective initial index levels on the first call observation date or (b) 95.00% of their respective initial index
levels on the second call observation date, causing the notes to be automatically called, you will not benefit from any increase in the closing level of the indices above 100.00% of the initial index level on the first call observation date or
95.00% of the initial index level on the second call observation date, and the maximum payment you will receive for each $1,000 face amount of your notes will depend on the applicable call premium amount. In addition, if the closing levels of
both indices are greater than 90.00% of their respective initial levels, the cash settlement amount you will receive on the stated maturity date is capped and your return will be limited to the maturity date premium regardless of the amount of
appreciation of the closing levels of the indices above their respective initial index levels.
Your Notes Are Subject to Automatic Redemption
We will automatically call and redeem all, but not part, of your notes on the corresponding call payment date if the closing
levels of both indices are greater than or equal to (a) 100.00% of their
respective initial index levels on the first call observation date or (b) 95.00% of their respective initial index levels on the
second call observation date. Therefore, the term for your notes may be reduced to approximately one year after the original issue date. You may not be able to reinvest the proceeds from an investment in the notes at a comparable return for a
similar level of risk in the event the notes are automatically called prior to maturity.
The Cash Settlement Amount You Will Receive on a Call Payment Date or on the Stated Maturity Date is Not Linked to the Closing
Level of the Indices at Any Time Other Than on the Applicable Call Observation Date or the Determination Date, as the Case May Be
The cash settlement amount you will receive on a call payment date, if any, will be paid only if the closing
levels of both indices are greater than or equal to (a) 100.00% of their respective initial index levels on the first call observation date or (b) 95.00% of their respective initial index levels on the second call observation date. Therefore,
the closing levels of the indices on dates other than the call observation dates will have no effect on any cash settlement amount paid in respect of your notes on the call payment date. In addition, the cash settlement amount you will receive
on the stated maturity date, if any, will be based on the closing levels of the indices on the determination date. Therefore, for example, if the closing level of one index dropped precipitously on the determination date, the cash settlement
amount for the notes may be significantly less than it would otherwise have been had the cash settlement amount been linked to the closing level of the indices prior to such drop. Although the actual closing levels of the indices on the call
payment dates, stated maturity date or at other times during the life of the notes may be higher than the closing levels of the indices on the call observation dates or the determination date, you will not benefit from the closing levels of the
indices at any time other than on the call observation dates or on the determination date.
The Cash Settlement Amount Will Be Based Solely on the Lesser Performing Index
If the notes are not automatically called, the cash settlement amount will be based on the lesser performing
index without regard to the performance of the other index. As a result, you could lose all or some of your initial investment if the lesser performing index return is negative, even if there is an increase in the level of the other index. This
could be the case even if the other index increased by an amount greater than the decrease in the lesser performing index.
Your Notes Will Not Bear Interest
You will not receive any interest payments on your notes. As a result, even if the cash settlement amount
payable for your notes on a call payment date or the stated maturity date, as applicable, exceeds the face amount of your notes, the overall return you earn on your notes may be less than you would have earned by investing in a non-indexed debt
security of comparable maturity that bears interest at a prevailing market rate.
The Return on Your Notes May Change Significantly Despite Only a Small Change in the Final Index Level of the
Lesser Performing Index
If the final index level of the lesser performing index is less than 70% of its initial index level, you will
receive less than the face amount of your notes and you could lose all or a substantial portion of your investment in the notes. This means that while a 30% drop between the initial index level of the lesser performing index and its final index
level will not result in a loss of principal on the notes, a decrease in the final index level of the lesser performing index to less than 70% of its initial index level will result in a loss of a significant portion of the principal amount of
the notes despite only a small change in the final index level of the lesser performing index.
The Market Value of Your Notes May Be Influenced by Many Unpredictable Factors
When we refer to the market value of your notes, we mean the value that you could receive for your notes if you
chose to sell them in the open market before the stated maturity date. A number of factors, many of which are beyond our control, will influence the market value of your notes, including:
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the levels of the indices;
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the volatility – i.e., the frequency and magnitude of changes – in the closing levels of the indices;
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the dividend rates of the index stocks;
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economic, financial, regulatory, political, military and other events that affect stock markets generally and the index stocks, and which may affect the closing levels of the
indices;
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interest rates and yield rates in the market;
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the time remaining until your notes mature; and
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our creditworthiness and the creditworthiness of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., whether actual or perceived, and including actual or anticipated upgrades or downgrades in our credit
ratings or the credit ratings of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. or changes in other credit measures.
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These factors, and many other factors, will influence the price you will receive if you sell your notes before
maturity, including the price you may receive for your notes in any market making transaction. If you sell your notes before maturity, you may receive less than the face amount of your notes.
You cannot predict the future performance of the indices based on their historical performance. The actual
performance of the indices over the life of the offered notes and the cash settlement amount paid on a call payment date or the stated maturity date, as the case may be, may bear little or no relation to the historical closing levels of the
indices or to the hypothetical examples shown elsewhere in this prospectus supplement.
If You Purchase Your Notes at a Premium to Face Amount, the Return on Your Investment Will Be Lower Than the
Return on Notes Purchased at Face Amount and the Impact of Certain Key Terms of the Notes Will Be Negatively Affected
The cash settlement amount you will be paid for your notes on the stated maturity date, if any, or the amount
you will be paid on a call payment date will not be adjusted based on the issue price you pay for the notes. If you purchase notes at a price that differs from the face amount of the notes, then the return on your investment in such notes held to
a call payment date or the stated maturity date will differ from, and may be substantially less than, the return on notes purchased at face amount. If you purchase your notes at a premium to face amount and hold them to a call payment date or the
stated maturity date, the return on your investment in the notes will be lower than it would have been had you purchased the notes at face amount or a discount to face amount.
If the Levels of the Indices Change, the Market Value of Your Notes May Not Change in the Same Manner
The price of your notes may move differently than the performance of the indices. Changes in the levels of the
indices may not result in a comparable change in the market value of your notes. Even if the closing level of each index is greater than or equal to its respective initial index level during some portion of the life of the notes, the market value
of your notes may not reflect this. We discuss some of the reasons for this disparity under “— The Market Value of Your Notes May Be Influenced by Many Unpredictable Factors” above.
Anticipated Hedging Activities by Goldman Sachs or Our Distributors May Negatively Impact Investors in the Notes and Cause Our Interests and Those
of Our Clients and Counterparties to be Contrary to Those of Investors in the Notes
Goldman Sachs expects to hedge our obligations under the notes by purchasing listed or over-the-counter options, futures and/or
other instruments linked to the indices or the index stocks. Goldman Sachs also expects to adjust the hedge by, among other things, purchasing or selling any of the foregoing, and perhaps other instruments linked to the indices or the index
stocks, at any time and from time to time, and to unwind the hedge by selling any of the foregoing on or before the determination date for your notes. Alternatively, Goldman Sachs may hedge all or part of our obligations under the notes with
unaffiliated distributors of the notes which we expect will undertake similar market activity. Goldman Sachs may also enter into, adjust and unwind hedging transactions relating to other index-linked notes whose returns are linked to changes in
the levels of the indices or the index stocks, as applicable.
In addition to entering into such transactions itself, or distributors entering into such transactions, Goldman Sachs may structure such transactions
for its clients or counterparties, or otherwise advise or assist clients or counterparties in entering into such transactions. These activities may be undertaken to achieve a variety of objectives, including: permitting other purchasers of the
notes or other securities to
hedge their investment in whole or in part; facilitating transactions for other clients or counterparties that may have business objectives or
investment strategies that are inconsistent with or contrary to those of investors in the notes; hedging the exposure of Goldman Sachs to the notes including any interest in the notes that it reacquires or retains as part of the offering process,
through its market-making activities or otherwise; enabling Goldman Sachs to comply with its internal risk limits or otherwise manage firmwide, business unit or product risk; and/or enabling Goldman Sachs to take directional views as to relevant
markets on behalf of itself or its clients or counterparties that are inconsistent with or contrary to the views and objectives of the investors in the notes.
Any of these hedging or other activities may adversely affect the levels of the indices — directly or indirectly
by affecting the price of the index stocks — and therefore the market value of your notes and the amount we will pay on your notes, if any. In addition, you should expect that these transactions will cause Goldman Sachs or its clients,
counterparties or distributors to have economic interests and incentives that do not align with, and that may be directly contrary to, those of an investor in the notes. Neither Goldman Sachs nor any distributor will have any obligation to take,
refrain from taking or cease taking any action with respect to these transactions based on the potential effect on an investor in the notes, and may receive substantial returns on hedging or other activities while the value of your notes
declines. In addition, if the distributor from which you purchase notes is to conduct hedging activities in connection with the notes, that distributor may otherwise profit in connection with such hedging activities and such profit, if any, will
be in addition to the compensation that the distributor receives for the sale of the notes to you. You should be aware that the potential to earn fees in connection with hedging activities may create a further incentive for the distributor to
sell the notes to you in addition to the compensation they would receive for the sale of the notes.
Goldman Sachs’ Trading and Investment Activities for its Own Account or for its Clients, Could Negatively
Impact Investors in the Notes
Goldman Sachs is a global investment banking, securities and investment management firm that provides a wide
range of financial services to a substantial and diversified client base that includes corporations, financial institutions, governments and individuals. As such, it acts as an investor, investment banker, research provider, investment manager,
investment advisor, market maker, trader, prime broker and lender. In those and other capacities, Goldman Sachs purchases, sells or holds a broad array of investments, actively trades securities, derivatives, loans, commodities, currencies,
credit default swaps, indices, baskets and other financial instruments and products for its own account or for the accounts of its customers, and will have other direct or indirect interests, in the global fixed income, currency, commodity,
equity, bank loan and other markets. Any of Goldman Sachs’ financial market activities may, individually or in the aggregate, have an adverse effect on the market for your notes, and you should expect that the interests of Goldman Sachs or its
clients or counterparties will at times be adverse to those of investors in the notes.
Goldman Sachs regularly offers a wide array of securities, financial instruments and other products into the
marketplace, including existing or new products that are similar to your notes, or similar or linked to the indices or index stocks. Investors in the notes should expect that Goldman Sachs will offer securities, financial instruments, and other
products that will compete with the notes for liquidity, research coverage or otherwise.
Goldman Sachs’ Market-Making Activities Could Negatively Impact Investors in the Notes
Goldman Sachs actively makes markets in and trades financial instruments for its own account and for the accounts of customers.
These financial instruments include debt and equity securities, currencies, commodities, bank loans, indices, baskets and other products. Goldman Sachs’ activities include, among other things, executing large block trades and taking long and
short positions directly and indirectly, through derivative instruments or otherwise. The securities and instruments in which Goldman Sachs takes positions, or expects to take positions, include securities and instruments of an index or index
stocks, securities and instruments similar to or linked to the foregoing or the currencies in which they are denominated. Market making is an activity where Goldman Sachs buys and sells on behalf of customers, or for its own account, to satisfy
the expected demand of customers. By its nature, market making involves facilitating transactions among market participants that have differing views of securities and
instruments. As a result, you should expect that Goldman Sachs will take positions that are inconsistent with, or adverse to, the
investment objectives of investors in the notes.
If Goldman Sachs becomes a holder of any securities of the indices or index stocks in its capacity as a
market-maker or otherwise, any actions that it takes in its capacity as securityholder, including voting or provision of consents, will not necessarily be aligned with, and may be inconsistent with, the interests of investors in the notes.
You Should Expect That Goldman Sachs Personnel Will Take Research Positions, or Otherwise Make
Recommendations, Provide Investment Advice or Market Color or Encourage Trading Strategies That Might Negatively Impact Investors in the Notes
Goldman Sachs and its personnel, including its sales and trading, investment research and investment management
personnel, regularly make investment recommendations, provide market color or trading ideas, or publish or express independent views in respect of a wide range of markets, issuers, securities and instruments. They regularly implement, or
recommend to clients that they implement, various investment strategies relating to these markets, issuers, securities and instruments. These strategies include, for example, buying or selling credit protection against a default or other event
involving an issuer or financial instrument. Any of these recommendations and views may be negative with respect to the indices or index stocks or other securities or instruments similar to or linked to the foregoing or result in trading
strategies that have a negative impact on the market for any such securities or instruments, particularly in illiquid markets. In addition, you should expect that personnel in the trading and investing businesses of Goldman Sachs will have or
develop independent views of the indices or index stocks, the relevant industry or other market trends, which may not be aligned with the views and objectives of investors in the notes.
Goldman Sachs Regularly Provides Services to, or Otherwise Has Business Relationships with, a Broad Client
Base, Which May Include the Sponsors of an Index or the Issuers of the Index Stocks or Other Entities That Are Involved in the Transaction
Goldman Sachs regularly provides financial advisory, investment advisory and transactional services to a
substantial and diversified client base, and you should assume that Goldman Sachs will, at present or in the future, provide such services or otherwise engage in transactions with, among others, the sponsors of the indices or the issuers of the
index stocks, or transact in securities or instruments or with parties that are directly or indirectly related to the foregoing. These services could include making loans to or equity investments in those companies, providing financial advisory
or other investment banking services, or issuing research reports. You should expect that Goldman Sachs, in providing such services, engaging in such transactions, or acting for its own account, may take actions that have direct or indirect
effects on the indices or index stocks, as applicable, and that such actions could be adverse to the interests of investors in the notes. In addition, in connection with these activities, certain Goldman Sachs personnel may have access to
confidential material non-public information about these parties that would not be disclosed to Goldman Sachs employees that were not working on such transactions as Goldman Sachs has established internal information barriers that are designed to
preserve the confidentiality of non-public information. Therefore, any such confidential material non-public information would not be shared with Goldman Sachs employees involved in structuring, selling or making markets in the notes or with
investors in the notes.
In this offering, as well as in all other circumstances in which Goldman Sachs receives any fees or other
compensation in any form relating to services provided to or transactions with any other party, no accounting, offset or payment in respect of the notes will be required or made; Goldman Sachs will be entitled to retain all such fees and other
amounts, and no fees or other compensation payable by any party or indirectly by holders of the notes will be reduced by reason of receipt by Goldman Sachs of any such other fees or other amounts.
The Offering of the Notes May Reduce an Existing Exposure of Goldman Sachs or Facilitate a Transaction or
Position That Serves the Objectives of Goldman Sachs or Other Parties
A completed offering may reduce Goldman Sachs’ existing exposure to the indices or index stocks, securities and instruments
similar to or linked to the foregoing or the currencies in which they are denominated, including exposure gained through hedging transactions in anticipation of this offering. An
offering of notes will effectively transfer a portion of Goldman Sachs’ exposure (and indirectly transfer the exposure of Goldman
Sachs’ hedging or other counterparties) to investors in the notes.
The terms of the offering (including the selection of the indices or index stocks, and the establishment of
other transaction terms) may have been selected in order to serve the investment or other objectives of Goldman Sachs or another client or counterparty of Goldman Sachs. In such a case, Goldman Sachs would typically receive the input of other
parties that are involved in or otherwise have an interest in the offering, transactions hedged by the offering, or related transactions. The incentives of these other parties would normally differ from and in many cases be contrary to those of
investors in the notes.
Other Investors in the Notes May Not Have the Same Interests as You
Other investors in the notes are not required to take into account the interests of any other investor in
exercising remedies or voting or other rights in their capacity as security holders or in making requests or recommendations to Goldman Sachs as to the establishment of other transaction terms. The interests of other investors may, in some
circumstances, be adverse to your interests. For example, certain investors may take short positions (directly or indirectly through derivative transactions) on assets that are the same or similar to your notes, index, index stocks or other
similar securities, which may adversely impact the market for or value of your notes.
The Policies of an Index Sponsor and Changes that Affect an Index or the Index Stocks Comprising an Index,
Could Affect the Cash Settlement Amount If the Notes Are Automatically Called on any Call Observation Date or the Cash Settlement Amount on the Stated Maturity Date and the Market Value of Your Notes
The policies of an index sponsor concerning the calculation of the level of an index, additions, deletions or
substitutions of the index stocks comprising such index, and the manner in which changes affecting such index stocks or their issuers, such as stock dividends, reorganizations or mergers, are reflected in the index level, could affect the level
of such index and, therefore, the market value of your notes. The market value of your notes could also be affected if an index sponsor changes these policies, for example, by changing the manner in which it calculates the index level, or if the
index sponsor discontinues or suspends calculation or publication of such index level, in which case it may become difficult to determine the market value of your notes. If events such as these occur, the calculation agent — which initially will
be GS&Co., our affiliate — may determine the applicable index levels on any such date — and thus the cash settlement amount if the notes are automatically called on any call observation date or the cash settlement amount on the stated
maturity date, as applicable — in a manner it considers appropriate, in its sole discretion. We describe the discretion that the calculation agent will have in determining the applicable index levels on any trading day, any call observation date
or the determination date and the cash settlement amount more fully under “Specific Terms of Your Notes — Discontinuance or Modification of an Index” and “— Role of Calculation Agent” below.
Except to the Extent The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. Is One of the Companies Whose Common Stock Comprises the
S&P 500® Index, There Is No Affiliation Between the Index Stock Issuers or the Index Sponsors and Us
The common stock of The Goldman Sachs
Group, Inc. is one of the index stocks comprising the S&P 500® Index. We
are not otherwise affiliated with the issuers of the index stocks or the index sponsors. As we have told you above, however, we or our affiliates may currently or from time to time in the future own securities of, or engage in business with, the index sponsors or the index stock issuers. Neither we nor
any of our affiliates have participated in the preparation of any publicly available information or made any “due diligence” investigation or inquiry with respect to the indices or any of the other index stock issuers. You, as an investor in
your notes, should make your own investigation into the indices and the index stock issuers. See “The Indices” below for additional information about each index.
Neither the index sponsors nor any of the other index stock
issuers are involved in the offering of your notes in any way and none of them have any obligation of any sort with respect to your notes. Thus, neither the index sponsors nor any of the other index stock issuers have any obligation to take
your interests into consideration for any reason, including in taking any corporate actions that might affect the market value of your notes.
The Return on Your Notes Will Not Reflect Any Dividends Paid on the Index Stocks
The applicable index sponsor calculates the level of an index by reference to
the prices of the index stocks, without taking account of the value of dividends paid
on those index stocks. Therefore, the return on your notes will not reflect the return you would realize if you actually owned the index stocks included in each index and received the dividends paid on those index stocks. You will not receive any dividends that may be paid on any of the index stocks by the index stock issuers. See “— You Have No Shareholder Rights or Rights to Receive Any Index Stock”
below for additional information.
You Have No Shareholder Rights or Rights to Receive Any Index Stock
Investing in your notes will not make you a holder of any of the index stocks. Neither you nor any other holder
or owner of your notes will have any rights with respect to the index stocks, including any voting rights, any right to receive dividends or other distributions, any rights to make a claim against the index stocks or any other rights of a holder
of the index stocks. Your notes will be paid in cash and you will have no right to receive delivery of any index stocks.
Past Index Performance is No Guide to Future Performance
The actual performance of the indices over the life of the notes, as well as the amount payable on a call
payment date or at maturity, if any, may bear little relation to the historical closing levels of the indices or to the hypothetical examples set forth elsewhere in this prospectus supplement. We cannot predict the future performance of the
indices.
As Calculation Agent, GS&Co. Will Have the Authority to Make Determinations that Could Affect the Value of
Your Notes
As calculation agent for your notes, GS&Co. will have discretion in making certain determinations that
affect your notes, including determining: whether your notes will be automatically called; the final index level of the lesser performing index on the determination date, which we will use to determine the amount we must pay on the stated
maturity date; whether to postpone a call observation date or the determination date because of a market disruption event or a non-trading day; the call observation dates; the call payment dates and the stated maturity date. The calculation agent
also has discretion in making certain adjustments relating to a discontinuation or modification of the indices. See “Specific Terms of Your Notes — Discontinuance or Modification of an Index” below. The exercise of this discretion by GS&Co.
could adversely affect the value of your notes and may present GS&Co. with a conflict of interest. We may change the calculation agent at any time without notice and GS&Co. may resign as calculation agent at any time upon 60 days’ written
notice to us.
Your Notes May Not Have an Active Trading Market
Your notes will not be listed or displayed on any securities exchange or included in any interdealer market
quotation system, and there may be little or no secondary market for your notes. Even if a secondary market for your notes develops, it may not provide significant liquidity and we expect that transaction costs in any secondary market would be
high. As a result, the difference between bid and asked prices for your notes in any secondary market could be substantial.
The Calculation Agent Can Postpone a Call Observation Date or the Determination Date, as the Case May Be, If a
Market Disruption Event or a Non-Trading Day Occurs or is Continuing
If the calculation agent determines that, on a date that would otherwise be a call observation date or the determination date, a
market disruption event has occurred or is continuing with respect to either index or that day is not a trading day, such call observation date or the determination date will be postponed as provided under “Specific Terms of Your Notes — Call
Observation Dates” and “Specific Terms of Your Notes — Determination Date”, as applicable. In no case, however, will the call observation date or the determination date be postponed to a date later than the corresponding originally scheduled
call payment date or the originally scheduled stated maturity date, as applicable, or if the corresponding originally scheduled call payment date or the originally scheduled stated maturity date is not a business day, later than the first
business day after the corresponding originally scheduled call payment date or the originally scheduled stated maturity date . Moreover, if a call observation date or the determination date, as applicable, is postponed to the last possible day,
but the market disruption event has not ceased by that day or that day is not a trading day, that day will nevertheless be the call
observation date or the determination date, as applicable, for the corresponding call payment date or stated maturity date. In
such a case, the calculation agent will determine the applicable closing levels or final index levels for such call observation date or the determination date based on the procedures described under “Specific Terms of Your Notes — Consequences of
a Market Disruption Event or a Non-Trading Day” below.
We May Sell an Additional Aggregate Face Amount of the Notes at a Different Issue Price
At our sole option, we may decide to sell an additional aggregate face amount of the notes subsequent to the
date of this prospectus supplement. The issue price of the notes in the subsequent sale may differ substantially (higher or lower) from the issue price you paid as provided on the cover of this prospectus supplement.
Certain Considerations for Insurance Companies and Employee Benefit Plans
Any insurance company or fiduciary of a pension plan or other employee benefit plan that is subject to the
prohibited transaction rules of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended, which we call “ERISA”, or the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, including an IRA or a Keogh plan (or a governmental plan to which similar
prohibitions apply), and that is considering purchasing the offered notes with the assets of the insurance company or the assets of such a plan, should consult with its counsel regarding whether the purchase or holding of the offered notes could
become a “prohibited transaction” under ERISA, the Internal Revenue Code or any substantially similar prohibition in light of the representations a purchaser or holder in any of the above categories is deemed to make by purchasing and holding the
offered notes. This is discussed in more detail under “Employee Retirement Income Security Act” below.
The Tax Consequences of an Investment in Your Notes Are Uncertain
The tax consequences of an investment in your notes are uncertain, both as to the timing and character of any
inclusion in income in respect of your notes.
The Internal Revenue Service announced on December 7, 2007 that it is considering issuing guidance regarding the
tax treatment of an instrument such as your notes, and any such guidance could adversely affect the value and the tax treatment of your notes. Among other things, the Internal Revenue Service may decide to require the holders to accrue ordinary
income on a current basis and recognize ordinary income on payment at maturity, and could subject non-U.S. investors to withholding tax. Furthermore, in 2007, legislation was introduced in Congress that, if enacted, would have required holders
that acquired instruments such as your notes after the bill was enacted to accrue interest income over the term of such instruments even though there will be no interest payments over the term of such instruments. It is not possible to predict
whether a similar or identical bill will be enacted in the future, or whether any such bill would affect the tax treatment of your notes. We describe these developments in more detail under “Supplemental Discussion of U.S. Federal Income Tax
Consequences – United States Holders – Possible Change in Law” below. You should consult your tax advisor about this matter. Except to the extent otherwise provided by law, GS Finance Corp. intends to continue treating the notes for U.S. federal
income tax purposes in accordance with the treatment described under “Supplemental Discussion of U.S. Federal Income Tax Consequences” on page S-46 below unless and until such time as Congress, the Treasury Department or the Internal Revenue
Service determine that some other treatment is more appropriate. Please also consult your tax advisor concerning the U.S. federal income tax and any other applicable tax consequences to you of owning your notes in your particular circumstances.
Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) Withholding May Apply to Payments on Your Notes, Including as a Result of the
Failure of the Bank or Broker Through Which You Hold the Notes to Provide Information to Tax Authorities
Please see the discussion under “United States Taxation — Taxation of Debt Securities — Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act
(FATCA) Withholding” in the accompanying prospectus for a description of the applicability of FATCA to payments made on your notes. The discussion in that section is hereby modified to
reflect regulations proposed by the Treasury Department indicating its intent to eliminate the requirements under FATCA of withholding on gross proceeds from the sale, exchange, maturity or other
disposition of relevant financial instruments. The Treasury Department has indicated that taxpayers may rely on these proposed regulations pending their finalization.
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We refer to the notes we are offering by this prospectus supplement as the “offered notes” or the “notes”. Please note
that in this prospectus supplement, references to “GS Finance Corp.”, “we”, “our” and “us” mean only GS Finance Corp. and do not include its subsidiaries or affiliates, references to “The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc.”, our parent
company, mean only The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. and do not include its subsidiaries or affiliates and references to “Goldman Sachs” mean The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. together with its consolidated subsidiaries and affiliates,
including us. Also, references to the “accompanying prospectus” mean the accompanying prospectus, dated July 10, 2017, and references to the “accompanying prospectus supplement” mean the accompanying prospectus supplement, dated July
10, 2017, for Medium-Term Notes, Series E, in each case of GS Finance Corp. and The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. Please note that in this section entitled “Specific Terms of Your Notes”, references to “holders” mean those who own notes
registered in their own names, on the books that we or the trustee maintain for this purpose, and not those who own beneficial interests in notes registered in street name or in notes issued in book-entry form through The Depository
Trust Company. Please review the special considerations that apply to owners of beneficial interests in the accompanying prospectus, under “Legal Ownership and Book-Entry Issuance”.
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The offered notes are part of a series of debt securities, entitled “Medium-Term Notes, Series E”, that we may issue under the
indenture from time to time as described in the accompanying prospectus supplement and accompanying prospectus. The offered notes are also “indexed debt securities”, as defined in the accompanying prospectus.
This prospectus supplement summarizes specific financial and other terms that apply to the offered notes, including your notes;
terms that apply generally to all Series E medium-term notes are described in “Description of Notes We May Offer” in the accompanying prospectus supplement. The terms described here supplement those described in the accompanying prospectus
supplement and the accompanying prospectus and, if the terms described here are inconsistent with those described there, the terms described here are controlling.
In addition to those terms described under “Summary Information” in this prospectus supplement, the following terms will apply
to your notes:
Specified currency:
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U.S. dollars (“$”)
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Form of note:
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global form only: yes, at DTC
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non-global form available: no
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Denominations: each note registered in the name of a holder must have a
face amount of $1,000 or an integral multiple of $1,000 in excess thereof
Defeasance applies as follows:
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full defeasance: no
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covenant defeasance: no
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Other terms:
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the default amount will be payable on any acceleration of the maturity of your notes as described under “— Special Calculation Provisions” below
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a business day for your notes will not be the same as a business day for our other Series E medium-term notes, as described under “— Special Calculation Provisions” below
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a trading day for your notes will be as described under “— Special Calculation Provisions” below
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Please note that the information about the settlement or trade date, issue price, discount or commission and net proceeds to GS
Finance Corp. on the front cover page or elsewhere in this prospectus supplement relates only to the initial issuance and sale of the offered notes. We may decide to sell additional notes on one or more dates after the date of this prospectus
supplement, at issue prices and with underwriting discounts and net proceeds that differ from the amounts set forth on the front cover page or elsewhere in this prospectus supplement. If you have purchased your notes in a market-making
transaction after the initial issuance and sale of the offered notes, any such relevant information about the sale to you will be provided in a separate confirmation of sale.
We describe the terms of your notes in more detail below.
Index, Index Sponsor and Index Stocks
In this prospectus supplement, when we refer to an index, we mean either the Russell
2000® Index or the S&P 500® Index specified on the front cover page, or any successor index, as each may be modified, replaced or adjusted from time to time as described under “— Discontinuance or Modification
of an Index” below. When we refer to an index sponsor as of any time, we mean the entity, including any successor sponsor, that determines and publishes the applicable index as then in effect. When we refer to the index stocks of an index as of
any time, we mean the stocks that comprise the index as then in effect, after giving effect to any additions, deletions or substitutions.
Automatic Call Feature
If the closing levels of both indices are greater than or equal to (a) 100.00% of their respective initial index levels on the first
call observation date or (b) 95.00% of their respective initial index levels on the second call observation date, your notes will be automatically called; if your notes are automatically called on any call observation date, on the corresponding
call payment date, you will receive an amount in cash equal to (i) $1,000 plus (ii) the product
of $1,000 times the call premium amount applicable to the corresponding call observation date for each $1,000 face amount of your notes.
The call premium amount with respect to the first scheduled call observation date is 10.8%, and the call premium amount with
respect to the second scheduled call observation date is 21.6%.
Payment of Principal on Stated Maturity Date
If your notes are not automatically
called, for each $1,000 face amount of your notes, we will pay you on the stated maturity date an amount in cash equal to:
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if the index return of both indices is greater
than or equal to -10%, the sum of (i) $1,000 plus (ii) the product of $1,000 times the maturity date premium amount; or
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if the index return of both indices is greater
than or equal to -30% but the index return of either index is less than -10%,
$1,000; or
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if the index return of either index is less
than -30%, the sum of (i) $1,000 plus (ii) the product of (a) the lesser performing index return times (b) $1,000. You will receive less than 70% of the face amount of your note.
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The maturity date premium amount is 32.4%.
With respect to each index, the index return is calculated by subtracting the initial index level from the final index level and dividing the result by the initial index level, with the quotient expressed as a
percentage.
The lesser performing index is the index with the lowest index return. The lesser performing index return is the index return of the lesser
performing index.
The initial index level is 1,473.536 with respect to the Russell 2000® Index and 2,643.85 with respect to the S&P
500® Index. With respect to each index, the calculation agent will determine the final index level, which will be the closing level of such index on the determination date. However, the calculation agent will have discretion to
adjust the closing level on any call observation date or the determination date or to determine it in a different manner as described under “ — Consequences of a Market Disruption Event or a Non-Trading Day” and “— Discontinuance or Modification
of an Index” below.
Stated Maturity Date
The stated maturity date is February 2, 2022, unless that day is not a business day, in which case the stated maturity date will
be the next following business day. If the determination date is postponed as described under “— Determination Date” below, the stated maturity date will also be postponed by the same number of business day(s) from but excluding the originally
scheduled determination date to and including the actual determination date.
Determination Date
The determination date is January 28, 2022, unless the calculation agent determines that, with respect to any index, a market
disruption event occurs or is continuing on that day or that day is not otherwise a trading day.
In the event the originally scheduled determination date is a non-trading day with respect to any index, the determination date
will be the first day thereafter that is a trading day for all indices (the “first qualified trading day”) provided that no market disruption event occurs or is continuing with respect to an index on that day. If a market disruption event with
respect to an index occurs or is continuing on the originally scheduled determination date or the first qualified trading day, the determination date will be the first following trading day on which the calculation agent determines that each
index has had at least one trading day (from and including the originally scheduled determination date or the first qualified trading day, as applicable) on which no market disruption event has occurred or is continuing and the closing level of
each index will be determined on or prior to the postponed determination date as set forth under “— Consequences of a Market Disruption Event or a Non-Trading Day” below. (In such case, the determination date may differ from the date on which
the level of an index is determined for the purpose of the calculations to be performed on the determination date.) In no event, however, will the determination date be postponed to a date later than the originally scheduled stated maturity date
(based on the originally scheduled determination date) or, if the originally scheduled stated maturity date is not a business day, later than the first business day after the originally scheduled stated maturity date, either due to the occurrence of serial non-trading days or due to the occurrence of one or more market disruption events. On such last possible determination date, if a market disruption
event occurs or is continuing with respect to an index that has not yet had such a trading day on which no market disruption event has occurred or is continuing or if such last possible day is not a trading day with respect to such index, that
day will nevertheless be the determination date.
Call Observation Dates
The call observation dates are February 4, 2020 and January 28, 2021, unless the calculation agent determines that, with respect to any index, a
market disruption event occurs or is continuing on that day or that day is not otherwise a trading day. In the event the originally scheduled call observation date is a non-trading day with respect to an index, the call observation date will be
the first day thereafter that is a trading day for all indices (the “first qualified call observation trading day”) provided that no market disruption event occurs for an index on that day. If a market disruption event with respect to an index
occurs on the originally scheduled call observation date or the first qualified call observation trading day, the call observation date will be the first following trading day (from and including the originally scheduled call observation date or
the first qualified call observation trading day, as applicable) on which no market disruption event has occurred or is continuing and the closing level of each index for that call observation date will be determined on or prior to the postponed
call observation date as set forth under “Consequences of a Market Disruption Event or a Non-Trading Day” below. (In such case, the call observation date may differ from the date on which the level of an index is determined for the purpose of
the calculations to be performed on the call observation date.) In no event, however, will a call observation date be postponed to a day later
than the originally scheduled call payment date (based on the originally scheduled call observation date) or, if the originally scheduled call payment date is not a business day, later than the first business day after the originally scheduled
call payment date, either due to the occurrence of serial non-trading days or due to the occurrence of one or more market disruption events. On such last possible call observation date applicable to the relevant call payment date, if a market
disruption event occurs or is continuing with respect to an index that has not yet had such a trading day on which no market disruption event has occurred or is continuing or if such last possible day is not a trading day with respect to such
index, that day will nevertheless be the call observation date.
Call Payment Dates
If your notes are automatically called on any call observation date, on the corresponding call payment date (the third business
day after the corresponding call observation date) you will receive an amount in cash equal to the sum of (i) $1,000 plus (ii) the product of $1,000 times the call premium amount applicable to the corresponding call observation date for each $1,000
face amount of your notes. If a call observation date is postponed as described under “— Call Observation Dates” above, the corresponding call payment date will also be postponed by the same number of business day(s) from but excluding the
originally scheduled call observation date to and including the actual call observation date.
Consequences of a Market Disruption Event or a Non-Trading Day
With respect to any index, if a market disruption event occurs or is continuing on a day that would otherwise be a call
observation date or the determination date, or such day is not a trading day, then such call observation date or the determination date will be postponed as described under “—Call Observation Dates” or “— Determination Date” above. If any call
observation date or the determination date is postponed to the last possible date due to the occurrence of serial non-trading days, the level of each index will be the calculation agent’s assessment of such level, in its sole discretion, on such
last possible postponed call observation date or determination date, as applicable.
If any call observation date or the determination date is postponed due to a market disruption event with respect to any index,
the closing level of each index with respect to such call observation date or the final index level with respect to the determination date, as applicable, will be calculated based on (i) for any index that is not affected by a market disruption
event on (A) the applicable originally scheduled call observation date or the first qualified call observation trading day thereafter (if applicable) or (B) the originally scheduled determination date or the first qualified trading day thereafter
(if applicable), the closing level of the index on that date, (ii) for any index that is affected by a market disruption event on (A) the applicable originally scheduled call observation date or the first qualified call observation trading day
thereafter (if applicable) or (B) the originally scheduled determination date or the first qualified trading day thereafter (if applicable), the closing level of the index on the first following trading day on which no market disruption event
exists for such index and (iii) the calculation agent’s assessment, in its sole discretion, of the level of any index on the last possible postponed call observation date or determination date, as applicable, with respect to such index as to
which a market disruption event continues through the last possible postponed call observation date or determination date. As a result, this could result in the closing level on any call observation date or final index level on the determination
date of each index being determined on different calendar dates.
For the avoidance of doubt, once the closing level for an index is determined for a call observation date or determination date,
the occurrence of a later market disruption event or non-trading day will not alter such calculation.
Discontinuance or Modification of an Index
If an index sponsor discontinues publication of an index and such index sponsor or anyone else publishes a substitute index that the calculation
agent determines is comparable to such index, or if the calculation agent designates a substitute index, then the calculation agent will determine the cash settlement amount on the call payment date or the stated maturity date, as applicable, by
reference to the
substitute index. We refer to any substitute index approved by the calculation agent as a successor index.
If the calculation agent determines on a call observation date or the determination date, as applicable, that the publication of
an index is discontinued and there is no successor index, the calculation agent will determine the cash settlement amount on the related call payment date or the stated maturity date, as applicable, by a computation methodology that the
calculation agent determines will as closely as reasonably possible replicate such index.
If the calculation agent determines that an index, the index stocks comprising that index or the method of calculating that
index is changed at any time in any respect — including any split or reverse split and any addition, deletion or substitution and any reweighting or rebalancing of the index or of the index stocks and whether the change is made by the index
sponsor under its existing policies or following a modification of those policies, is due to the publication of a successor index, is due to events affecting one or more of the index stocks or their issuers or is due to any other reason — and is
not otherwise reflected in the level of the index by the index sponsor pursuant to the then-current index methodology of the index, then the calculation agent will be permitted (but not required) to make such adjustments in such index or the
method of its calculation as it believes are appropriate to ensure that the levels of such index used to determine the cash settlement amount on the related call payment date or the stated maturity date, as applicable, is equitable.
All determinations and adjustments to be made by the calculation agent with respect to an index may be made by the calculation
agent in its sole discretion. The calculation agent is not obligated to make any such adjustments.
Default Amount on Acceleration
If an event of default occurs and the maturity of your notes is accelerated, we will pay the default amount in respect of the
principal of your notes at the maturity, instead of the amount payable on the stated maturity date as described earlier. We describe the default amount under “— Special Calculation Provisions” below.
For the purpose of determining whether the holders of our Series E medium-term
notes, which include your notes, are entitled to take any action under the indenture, we will treat the outstanding face amount of each of your notes as the outstanding principal amount of that note. Although the terms of your notes differ from
those of the other Series E medium-term notes, holders of specified percentages in principal amount of all Series E medium-term notes, together in some cases with other series of our debt securities, will be able to take action affecting all
the Series E medium-term notes, including your notes, except with respect to certain Series E medium-term notes if the terms of such notes specify that the holders of specified percentages in principal amount of all of such notes must also
consent to such action. This action may involve changing some of the terms that apply to the Series E medium-term notes, accelerating the maturity of the Series E medium-term notes after a default or waiving some of our obligations under the
indenture. In addition, certain changes to the indenture and the notes that only affect certain debt securities may be made with the approval of holders of a majority in principal amount of such affected debt securities. We discuss these
matters in the accompanying prospectus under “Description of Debt Securities We May Offer — Default, Remedies and Waiver of Default” and “— Modification of the Debt Indentures and Waiver of Covenants.
Manner of Payment
Any payment or delivery on your note at maturity will be made to an account designated by the holder of your note and approved by
us, or at the office of the trustee in New York City, but only when your note is surrendered to the trustee at that office. We also may make any payment or delivery in accordance with the applicable procedures of the depositary.
Modified Business Day
As described in the accompanying prospectus, any payment on your notes that would otherwise be due on a day that is not a
business day may instead be paid on the next day that is a business day, with the same effect as if paid on the original due date. For your notes, however, the term business day may have a different meaning than it does for other Series E
medium-term notes. We discuss this term under “— Special Calculation Provisions” below.
Role of Calculation Agent
The calculation agent in its sole discretion will make all determinations regarding each index, the regular record dates, the
closing level of each index on each call observation date, each index return, each final index level, the determination date, the call observation dates, call payment dates, business days, trading days, a call payment date or the stated maturity
date and the amount of cash payable on your notes on a call payment date or at maturity, as applicable. Absent manifest error, all determinations of the calculation agent will be final and binding on you and us, without any liability on the part
of the calculation agent.
Please note that GS&Co., our affiliate, is currently serving as the calculation agent as of the date of this prospectus
supplement. We may change the calculation agent for your notes at any time after the date of this prospectus supplement without notice and GS&Co. may resign as calculation agent at any time upon 60 days’ written notice to us.
Special Calculation Provisions
Business Day
When we refer to a business day with respect to your notes, we mean a day that is a New York business day as described under
“Description of Debt Securities We May Offer — Calculations of Interest on Debt Securities — Business Days” on page 21 in the accompanying prospectus. A day is a scheduled business day if, as of the trade date, such day is scheduled to be a New
York business day.
Trading Day
When we refer to a trading day with
respect to an index, we mean a day on which the respective principal securities markets for all of the index stocks are open for trading, the index sponsor is open for business and such index is calculated and published by the index sponsor.
Closing Level
When we refer to the closing level of the Russell 2000® Index on any trading day, we mean the closing level of that
index or any successor index reported by Bloomberg Financial Services, or any successor reporting service we may select, on such trading day for that index. Currently, whereas the index sponsor publishes the official closing level of the Russell
2000® Index to six decimal places, Bloomberg Financial Services reports the closing level of the Russell 2000® Index to fewer decimal places. As a result, the closing level of the Russell 2000® Index reported by
Bloomberg Financial Services generally may be lower or higher than the official closing level of the Russell 2000® Index published by the index sponsor.
When we refer to the closing level for the S&P 500® Index on any trading day, we mean the
official closing level of the index or any successor index published by the index sponsor on such trading day for such index.
Default Amount
The default amount for your notes on any day (except as provided in the last sentence under “—Default Quotation Period” below), will be an amount in
the specified currency for the face amount of your notes, equal to the cost of having a qualified financial institution, of the kind and selected as described
below, expressly assume all of our payment and other obligations with respect to your notes as of that day and as if no default or acceleration had
occurred, or to undertake other obligations providing substantially equivalent economic value to you with respect to your notes. That cost will equal:
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the lowest amount that a qualified financial institution would charge to effect this assumption or undertaking, plus
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the reasonable expenses, including reasonable attorneys’ fees, incurred by the holder of your notes in preparing any documentation necessary for this assumption or undertaking.
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During the default quotation period for your notes, which we describe below, the holder and/or we or the calculation agent may
request a qualified financial institution to provide a quotation of the amount it would charge to effect this assumption or undertaking. If either party obtains a quotation, it must notify the other party in writing of the quotation. The amount
referred to in the first bullet point above will equal the lowest — or, if there is only one, the only — quotation obtained, and as to which notice is so given, during the default quotation period. With respect to any quotation, however, the
party not obtaining the quotation may object, on reasonable and significant grounds, to the assumption or undertaking by the qualified financial institution providing the quotation and notify the other party in writing of those grounds within two
business days after the last day of the default quotation period, in which case that quotation will be disregarded in determining the default amount.
Default Quotation Period
The default quotation period is the period beginning on the day the default amount first becomes due and ending on the third
business day after that day, unless:
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no quotation of the kind referred to above is obtained, or
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every quotation of that kind obtained is objected to within five business days after the day the default amount first becomes due.
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If either of these two events occurs, the default quotation period will continue until the third business day after the first
business day on which prompt notice of a quotation is given as described above. If that quotation is objected to as described above within five business days after that first business day, however, the default quotation period will continue as
described in the prior sentence and this sentence.
In any event, if the default quotation period and the subsequent two business day objection period have not ended before the
determination date, then the default amount will equal the principal amount of your notes.
Qualified Financial Institutions
For the purpose of determining the default amount at any time, a qualified financial institution must be a financial institution
organized under the laws of any jurisdiction in the United States of America, Europe or Japan, which at that time has outstanding debt obligations with a stated maturity of one year or less from the date of issue and that is, or whose securities
are, rated either:
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A-1 or higher by Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services or any successor, or any other comparable rating then used by that rating agency, or
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P-1 or higher by Moody’s Investors Service, Inc. or any successor, or any other comparable rating then used by that rating agency.
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Market Disruption Event
With respect to any given trading day, any of the following will be a market disruption event with respect to an index:
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a suspension, absence or material limitation of trading in index stocks constituting 20% or more, by weight, of the index on their respective primary markets, in each case for more
than two consecutive hours of trading or during the one half hour before the close of trading in that market, as determined by the calculation agent in its sole discretion,
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a suspension, absence or material limitation of trading in option or futures contracts relating to the index or to index stocks constituting 20% or more, by weight, of such index
in the respective primary markets for those contracts, in each case for more than two consecutive hours of trading or during the one-half hour before the close of trading in that market, as determined by the calculation agent in its
sole discretion, or
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index stocks constituting 20% or more, by weight, of the index, or option or futures contracts, if available, relating to the index or to index stocks constituting 20% or more, by
weight, of the index are not trading on what were the respective primary markets for those index stocks or contracts, as determined by the calculation agent in its sole discretion,
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and, in the case of any of these events, the calculation agent
determines in its sole discretion that the event could materially interfere with the ability of GS Finance Corp. or any of its affiliates or a similarly situated party to unwind all or a material portion of a hedge that could be effected with
respect to the notes. For more information about hedging by GS Finance Corp. and/or any of its affiliates, see “Use of Proceeds” and “Hedging” below.
The following events will not be market disruption events:
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a limitation on the hours or numbers of days of trading, but only if the limitation results from an announced change in the regular business hours of the relevant market, and
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a decision to permanently discontinue trading in option or futures contracts relating to an index or to any index stock.
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For this purpose, an “absence of trading” in the primary securities market on which an index stock is traded, or on which option
or futures contracts relating to an index or an index stock are traded, will not include any time when that market is itself closed for trading under ordinary circumstances. In contrast, a suspension or limitation of trading in an index stock or
in option or futures contracts, if available, relating to an index or an index stock in the primary market for that stock or those contracts, by reason of:
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a price change exceeding limits set by that market,
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an imbalance of orders relating to that index stock or those contracts, or
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a disparity in bid and ask quotes relating to that index stock or those contracts,
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will constitute a suspension or material limitation of trading in that stock or those contracts in that market.
A market disruption event with respect to one index will not, by itself, constitute a market disruption event for the other
unaffected index.
As is the case throughout this prospectus supplement, references to the index in this description of market disruption events includes any successor
index as it may be modified, replaced or adjusted from time to time.
We will lend the net proceeds from the sale of the offered notes to The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. or its affiliates. The Goldman
Sachs Group, Inc. will use the proceeds from such loans for the purposes we describe in the accompanying prospectus under “Use of Proceeds”. We or our affiliates may also use those proceeds in transactions intended to hedge our obligations under
the offered notes as described below.
In anticipation of the sale of the offered notes, we and/or our affiliates have entered into or expect to enter into hedging
transactions involving purchases of listed or over-the-counter options, futures and other instruments linked to the indices or the index stocks on or before the trade date. In addition, from time to time after we issue the offered notes, we
and/or our affiliates may enter into additional hedging transactions and to unwind those we have entered into, in connection with the offered notes and perhaps in connection with other index-linked notes we issue, some of which may have returns
linked to the indices or the index stocks. Consequently, with regard to your notes, from time to time, we and/or our affiliates:
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expect to acquire, or dispose of positions in listed or over-the-counter options, futures or other instruments linked to the indices or some or all of the index stocks,
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may take or dispose of positions in the securities of the index stock issuers themselves,
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may take or dispose of positions in listed or over-the-counter options or other instruments based on indices designed to track the performance of the stock exchanges or other
components of the equity markets, and /or
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may take short positions in the index stocks or other securities of the kind described above — i.e., we and/or our affiliates may sell securities of the kind that we do not own or
that we borrow for delivery to purchaser.
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We and/or our affiliates may acquire a long or short position in securities similar to your notes from time to time and may, in
our or their sole discretion, hold or resell those securities.
In the future, we and/or our affiliates expect to close out hedge positions relating to the offered notes and perhaps relating
to other notes with returns linked to the indices or the index stocks. We expect these steps to involve sales of instruments linked to the indices on or shortly before the determination date. These steps may also involve sales and/or purchases
of some or all of the index stocks, or listed or over-the-counter options, futures or other instruments linked to the indices, some or all of the index stocks or indices designed to track the performance of the U.S., European, Asian or other
stock exchanges or other components of the U.S., European, Asian or other equity markets or other components of such markets.
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The hedging activity discussed above may adversely affect the market value of your notes from time
to time and the amount we will pay on your notes at maturity. See “Additional Risk Factors Specific to Your Notes” above for a discussion of these adverse effects.
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The Russell 2000® Index
The Russell 2000® Index is sponsored by FTSE Russell (“Russell”) and measures the composite price
performance of stocks of 2,000 companies in the U.S. equity market. It is generally considered to be a “small-cap” index. Additional information about the Russell 2000® Index is available on the following website:
ftse.com/analytics/factsheets/Home/Search#. We are not incorporating by reference the website or any material it includes in this prospectus supplement.
As of January 2, 2019, the 2,000 companies included in the Russell 2000® Index were divided into nine Russell Global Sectors. The Russell
Global Sectors include (with the approximate percentage currently included in such sectors indicated in parentheses): Consumer Discretionary (14.99%), Consumer Staples (2.43%), Financial Services (24.51%), Health Care (14.26%), Materials &
Processing (6.13%), Other Energy (3.53%), Producer Durables (13.26%), Technology (13.10%) and Utilities (4.68%). (Sector designations are determined by the index sponsor using criteria it
has selected or developed. Index sponsors may use very different standards for determining sector designations. In addition, many companies operate in a number of sectors, but are listed in only one sector and the basis on which that sector is
selected may also differ. As a result, sector comparisons between indices with different index sponsors may reflect differences in methodology as well as actual differences in the sector composition of the indices.)
The Russell 2000® Index includes approximately 2,000 of the smallest securities that form the Russell 3000®
Index. The Russell 3000® Index is comprised of the 3,000 largest U.S. companies, or 98% based on market capitalization, of the investable U.S. equity market. The Russell 2000® Index is designed to track the performance of
the small capitalization segment of the U.S. equity market.
Selection of Constituent Stocks of the Russell 2000® Index
The Russell 2000® Index is a sub-index of the Russell 3000® Index. To be eligible for inclusion in the
Russell 3000® Index, and, consequently, the Russell 2000® Index, a company’s stocks must be listed on the rank day in May of a given year (the timetable is announced each spring) and Russell must have access to documentation
verifying the company’s eligibility for inclusion. Eligible initial public offerings (“IPOs”) are added to Russell U.S. Indices quarterly, based on total market capitalization rankings within the market-adjusted capitalization breaks established
during the most recent reconstitution. To be added to any Russell U.S. index during a quarter outside of reconstitution, IPOs must meet additional eligibility criteria.
A company is included in the U.S. equity markets and is eligible for inclusion in the Russell 3000® Index, and consequently, the Russell
2000® Index, if that company incorporates in the U.S., has its headquarters in the U.S. and also trades with the highest liquidity in the U.S. If a company does not satisfy all of the above criteria, it can still be included in the
U.S. equity market if any one of the following home country indicators is in the United States: (i) country of incorporation, (ii) country of headquarters and (iii) country in which the company trades with the highest liquidity (as defined by a
two-year average daily dollar trading volume from all exchanges within the country), and the primary location of that company’s assets or its revenue, based on an average of two years of assets or revenues data, is also in the United States. In
addition, if there is insufficient information to assign a company to the U.S. equity markets based on its assets or revenue, the company may nonetheless be assigned to the U.S. equity markets if the headquarters of the company is located in the
United States or if the headquarters of the company is located in certain “benefit-driven incorporation countries”, or “BDIs”, and that company’s most liquid stock exchange is in the United States. The BDI countries are Anguilla, Antigua and
Barbuda, Aruba, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bermuda, Bonaire, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Channel Islands, Cook Islands, Curaçao, Faroe Islands, Gibraltar, Guernsey, Isle of Man, Jersey, Liberia, Marshall Islands, Panama, Saba, Sint
Eustatius, Sint Maarten and Turks and Caicos Islands. A U.S.-listed company is not eligible for inclusion within the U.S. equity
market if it has been classified by Russell as a China N share on the rank date of the index reconstitution. A company will be considered a China N share if the following criteria are satisfied: (i) the company is incorporated outside of the
People’s Republic of China, (ii) the company is listed on the NYSE, the NASDAQ or the NYSE MKT, (iii) over 55% of the revenue or assets of the company are derived from the People’s Republic of China, and (iv) the
company is controlled by a mainland Chinese entity, company or individual (if the shareholder background cannot be determined with publicly available information,
Russell will consider whether the establishment and origin of the company are in mainland China and whether the company is headquartered in mainland China). ADRs and ADSs are not eligible for inclusion in the Russell 2000® Index.
In addition, all securities eligible for inclusion in the Russell 3000® Index, and consequently, the Russell 2000®
Index, must trade on an eligible exchange (BATS, IEX, NYSE, NYSE MKT, NYSE Arca and NASDAQ).
Exclusions from the Russell 2000® Index
Russell specifically excludes the following companies and securities from the Russell 2000® Index: (i) preferred and
convertible preferred stock, redeemable shares, participating preferred stock, warrants, rights, installment receipts and trust receipts; (ii) royalty trusts, U.S. limited liability companies, closed-end investment companies, companies that are
required to report Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses (as defined by the SEC), including business development companies, blank check companies, special-purpose acquisition companies and limited partnerships; (iii) companies with a total market
capitalization less than $30 million; (iv) companies with only a small portion of their shares available in the marketplace (companies with 5% or less float); (v) bulletin board, pink sheets or over-the-counter traded securities, including
securities for which prices are displayed on the FINRA ADF; (vi) real estate investment trusts and publicly traded partnerships that generate, or have historically generated, unrelated business taxable income and have not taken steps to block
their unrelated business taxable income to equity holders; and (vii) companies with 5% or less of the company’s voting rights in the hands of unrestricted shareholders (existing
constituents that do not currently have more than 5% of the company’s voting rights in the hands of unrestricted shareholders have until the September 2022 review to meet this requirement).
Initial List of Eligible Securities
The primary criterion Russell uses to determine the initial list of securities eligible for the Russell 3000® Index
and, consequently, the Russell 2000® Index, is total market capitalization, which is calculated by multiplying the total outstanding shares for a company by the market price as of the rank day for those securities being considered at
annual reconstitution. IPOs may be added between constitutions as noted below. All common stock share classes are combined in determining a company’s total shares outstanding. If multiple share classes have been combined, the number of total
shares outstanding will be multiplied by the primary exchange close price and used to determine the company’s total market capitalization. In cases where the common stock share classes act independently of each other (e.g., tracking stocks), each
class is considered for inclusion separately. Stocks must have a closing price at or above $1.00 on their primary exchange or an eligible secondary exchange on the last trading day of May of each year to be eligible for inclusion in the Russell
2000® Index. In order to reduce unnecessary turnover, if an existing member’s closing price is less than $1.00 on the rank day in May, it will be considered eligible if the average of the daily closing prices from their primary
exchange during the 30 days prior to the rank day is equal to or greater than $1.00. If an existing member does not trade on the rank day, it must price at $1.00 or above on another eligible U.S. exchange to remain eligible.
Multiple Share Classes
If an eligible company trades under multiple share classes or if a company distributes shares of an additional share class to its existing
shareholders through a mandatory corporate action, each share class will be reviewed independently for inclusion. Share classes in addition to the primary vehicle (the pricing vehicle) that have a total market capitalization larger than the
smallest company in the Russell 3000ETM Index, an average daily dollar trading value that exceeds that of the global median, and a float greater than 5% of shares available in the market place are eligible for inclusion.
The pricing vehicle will generally be designated as the share class with the highest two-year trading volume as of the rank day. In the absence of
two years’ worth of data, all available data will be used for this calculation. If the difference between trading volumes for each share class is less than 20%, the share class with the most available shares outstanding will be used as the
pricing vehicle. At least 100
day trading volume is necessary to consider the class as a pricing vehicle for existing members. New members will be analyzed on all available
data, even if that data is for less than 100 days.
Annual Reconstitution
The Russell 2000® Index is reconstituted annually by Russell to reflect changes in the marketplace. The list of
companies is ranked based on total market capitalization on the last trading day in May, with the actual reconstitution occurring on the final Friday of June each year, unless the final Friday in June is the 29th or 30th, in which case
reconstitution will occur on the preceding Friday. A full calendar for reconstitution is made available each spring.
A company’s total shares are multiplied by the primary exchange close price of the pricing vehicle and used to determine the company’s total market
capitalization for the purpose of ranking of companies and determination of index membership. If no volume exists on the primary exchange on the rank day, the last trade price from an eligible secondary exchange will be used where volume exists
(using the lowest trade price above $1.00 if multiple secondary markets exist). The company’s rank will be determined based on the cumulative market capitalization. As of the June 2016 reconstitution, any share class not qualifying for
eligibility independently will not be aggregated with the pricing vehicle within the available shares calculation.
For mergers and spin-offs that are effective between the rank day and the Friday prior to annual reconstitution in June, the market capitalizations
of the impacted securities are recalculated and membership is reevaluated as of the effective date of the corporate action. For corporate events that occur during the final week of reconstitution (during which reconstitution is finalized Friday
after U.S. market close), market capitalizations and memberships will not be reevaluated. Non index members that have been considered ineligible as of rank day will not be reevaluated in the event of a subsequent corporate action that occurs
between rank day and the reconstitution effective date.
Index Calculation and Capitalization Adjustments
As a capitalization-weighted index, the Russell 2000® Index reflects changes in the capitalization, or market value, of the index stocks
relative to the capitalization on a base date. This discussion describes the “price return” calculation of the Russell 2000® Index. The current Russell 2000® Index value is the compounded result of the cumulative daily (or
monthly) return percentages, where the starting value of the Russell 2000® Index is equal to the base value (100) and base date (December 31, 1978). Returns between any two dates can then be derived by dividing the ending period index
value (IV1) by the beginning period (IV0) index value, so that the return equals [(IV1 / IV0) –1]*100.
Constituent stocks of the Russell 2000® Index are weighted in the Russell 2000® Index by their free-float market
capitalization, which is calculated by multiplying the primary closing price by the number of free-float shares. Free-float shares are shares that are available to the public for purchase as determined by Russell. Adjustments to shares are
reviewed quarterly (including at reconstitution) and for major corporate actions such as mergers.
The following are excluded from free float: shares directly owned by state, regional, municipal and local governments (excluding shares held by
independently managed pension schemes for governments); shares held by sovereign wealth funds where each holding is 10% or greater of the total number of shares in issue; shares held by directors, senior executives and managers of the company,
and by their family and direct relations, and by companies with which they are affiliated; shares held within employee share plans; shares held by public companies or by non-listed subsidiaries of public companies; shares held by founders,
promoters, former directors, founding venture capital and private equity firms, private companies and individuals (including employees) where the holding is 10% or greater of the total number of shares in issue; all shares where the holder is
subject to a lock-in clause (for the duration of that clause, after which free float changes resulting from the expiration of a lock-in clause will be implemented at the next quarterly review subsequent to there being a minimum of 20 business
days
between the expiration date of such lock-in clause and the Tuesday before the first Friday of the review month; if the previously locked-in shares
are sold by way of a corporate event (such as a secondary offering), any change to the free float will be applied T+2 following completion and therefore will not be subject to the minimum 20 business day rule); shares held by an investor,
investment company or an investment fund that is actively participating in the management of a company or is holding shares for publicly announced strategic reasons, or has successfully placed a current member to the board of directors of a
company; and shares that are subject to ongoing contractual agreements (such as swaps) where they would ordinarily be treated as restricted. In addition, while portfolio holdings such as pension funds, insurance funds or investment companies will
generally not be considered as restricted from free float, where a single portfolio holding is 30% or greater it will be regarded as strategic and therefore restricted (and will remain restricted until the holding falls below 30%).
Corporate Actions Affecting the Russell 2000® Index
Russell adjusts the Russell 2000® Index on a daily basis in response to certain corporate actions and events.
Therefore, a company’s membership in the Russell 2000® Index and its weight in the Russell 2000® Index can be impacted by these corporate actions. The adjustment is applied based on sources of public information, including
press releases and Securities and Exchange Commission filings. Prior to the completion of a corporate action or event, Russell estimates the effective date. Russell will then adjust the anticipated effective date based on public information until
the date is considered final. Depending on the time on a given day that an action is determined to be final, Russell will generally either (1) apply the action before the open on the ex-date or (2) apply the action after providing appropriate
notice. If Russell has confirmed the completion of a corporate action, scheduled to become effective subsequent to a rebalance, the event may be implemented in conjunction with the rebalance to limit turnover, provided appropriate notice can be
given. Russell applies the following methodology guidelines when adjusting the Russell 2000® Index in response to corporate actions and events:
“No Replacement” Rule — Securities that are
deleted from the Russell 2000® Index between reconstitution dates, for any reason (e.g., mergers, acquisitions or other similar corporate activity) are not replaced. Thus, the number of securities in the Russell 2000® Index
over the past year will fluctuate according to corporate activity.
Mergers and Acquisitions
Adjustments due to mergers and acquisitions are applied to the Russell 2000® Index after the action is determined to be final. In the
event that a constituent is being acquired for cash or is delisted subsequent to an index review, such constituent will be removed from the Russell 2000® Index in conjunction with the index review, assuming that the action is
determined to be final and a minimum of two days’ notice can be provided.
Between constituents: When mergers and acquisitions take place between companies that are both constituents of a Russell index for cash, the target
company is deleted and shares of the acquiring stock are increased according to the offer terms. When mergers and acquisitions take place between companies that are both constituents of a Russell index for stock, the target company is deleted
from the Russell 2000® Index at the last traded price.
Between a constituent and a non-constituent: If the target company is
a member of the Russell 2000® Index, it is deleted from the Russell 2000® Index and the acquiring company will be included initially in the Russell 2000® Index provided it is eligible in all other respects at the
time of the merger, regardless of previous eligibility screenings. If the acquiring company is deemed eligible it will be added to the Russell 2000® Index on the effective date and the opening price will be calculated using the offer
terms.
Given sufficient market hours after the confirmation of a merger or acquisition, Russell effects the action after the close on the last day of
trading of the target company, or at an appropriate time once the transaction has been deemed to be final.
Rights Offerings — Rights offered to shareholders are reflected in the
Russell 2000® Index only if the subscription price of the rights is at a discount to the market price of the stock. Provided that Russell has been alerted to the rights offer prior to the ex-date, it will adjust the price of the stock
for the value of the rights and increased shares according to the terms of the offering before the open on the ex-date.
Spin-offs— Spun-off companies are added to the parent company’s index
if the parent company’s market value is reduced simultaneously per the spin-off valuation. Spun-off companies are added to the Russell 2000® Index at the same time as they are spun-off from their parent company on the ex-date of the
distribution.
Initial Public Offerings — Eligible IPOs are added
to the Russell 2000® Index based on total market capitalization ranking within the market-adjusted capitalization breaks established at the most recent annual reconstitution.
An IPO of additional share classes will be considered for eligibility and must meet the same eligibility criteria for all other
multiple share classes. If at the time of the IPO the additional share class does not meet the eligibility criteria for separate index membership, it will not be added to the Russell 2000® Index and will subsequently be reviewed for
index membership during the next annual reconstitution.
Once IPO additions have been announced, an IPO may be added to the Russell 2000® Index prior to the previously announced schedule, if a
corporate action has deemed this to be appropriate and notice can be provided (e.g. an index member automatically receives shares via a stock distribution into a projected IPO add).
Tender Offers — A company acquired as a result of a tender offer is
removed when (i) (a) offer acceptances reach 90%; (b) shareholders have validly tendered and the shares have been irrevocably accepted for payment; and (c) all pertinent offer conditions have been reasonably met and the acquirer has not
explicitly stated that it does not intend to acquire the remaining shares; (ii) where offer acceptances are below 90%, there is reason to believe that the remaining free float is under 5% based on information available at the time; or (iii)
following completion of the offer the acquirer has stated intent to finalize the acquisition via a short-form merger, squeeze-out, top-up option or any other compulsory mechanism.
Where the conditions for index deletion are not met, Russell may implement a free float change based on the reported acceptance results at the
expiration of the initial, subsequent or final offer period where (i) the minimum acceptance level as stipulated by the acquiror is met; (ii) shareholders have validly tendered and the shares have been irrevocably accepted for payment; (iii) all
pertinent offer conditions have been reasonably met and (iv) the change to the current float factor is greater than 3%. A minimum two day notice period of the change is generally provided. If the offer includes a stock consideration, the
acquiring company’s shares will be increased proportionate to the free float change of the target company. If the target company’s free float change is greater than 3%, the associated change to the acquiring company’s shares will be implemented
regardless of size. Additionally, if the change to the target company is less than 3%, then no change will be implemented to the target or the acquiring company at the time of the event, regardless of any change to the acquiring company’s shares.
The target company will then be deleted as a second-step, if the conditions for deletion are achieved at the expiration of a subsequent offer period.
Delisted and Suspended Stocks — A stock will be deleted as a
constituent if it is delisted from all eligible exchanges, becomes bankrupt, files for bankruptcy protection, is insolvent or is liquidated, or where evidence of a change in circumstances makes it ineligible for index inclusion. If, however, a
stock is suspended, Russell will determine its treatment as follows:
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if a constituent is declared bankrupt without any indication of compensation to shareholders, the last traded price will be adjusted to zero value and the constituent will be removed
from the Russell 2000® Index with T+2 notice;
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in all other cases, a constituent will continue to be included in the Russell 2000® Index for a period of up to 20 business days at its last traded price;
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if a constituent continues to be suspended at the end of the 20 business day period, it will be subject to review and a decision will be taken to either allow the constituent to
remain in the Russell 2000® Index for a further period of up to 20 business days or to remove it at zero value. In making this determination, Russell will take into account the stated reasons for the suspension. These
reasons may include announcements made by the company regarding a pending acquisition or restructuring, and any stated intentions regarding a date for the resumption of trading. This procedure will be repeated at successive 20
business day intervals thereafter until either trading recommences or the suspension period reaches 80 business days;
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if the suspension period reaches 80 business days, Russell will provide notice that the constituent will be removed at zero value following the expiry of at least 40 business days;
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in certain limited circumstances where the index weight of the constituent is significant and Russell determines that a market-related value can be established for the suspended
constituent, for example because similar company securities continue to trade, deletion may take place at the market-related value instead. In such
circumstances, Russell will set out its rationale for the proposed treatment of the constituent at the end of the 80 business day period;
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if, following the end of the 80 business day period, a suspended constituent resumes trading before the Wednesday before the first Friday of March, June, September or December, the
deletion notice will be rescinded and the constituent will be retained in the Russell 2000® Index. If the constituent resumes trading after these dates but before the review effective date, the constituent will continue to
be removed from the Russell 2000® Index as previously announced but in these circumstances the deletion may instead be implemented at market value; and
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if a constituent has been removed from the Russell 2000® Index and trading is subsequently restored, the constituent will only be re-considered for inclusion after a
period of 12 months from its deletion. For the purposes of index eligibility it will be treated as a new issue.
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Bankruptcy and Voluntary Liquidations — Companies that file for a
Chapter 7 liquidation bankruptcy or have filed a liquidation plan will be removed from the Russell 2000® Index at the time of the bankruptcy filing (except when shareholder approval is required to finalize the liquidation plan, in
which case the company will be removed once shareholder approval has been granted); whereas companies filing for a Chapter 11 reorganization bankruptcy will remain a member of the Russell 2000® Index, unless the company is delisted
from the primary exchange, in which case normal delisting rules apply. If a company files for bankruptcy, is delisted and it can be confirmed that it will not trade on any market, including OTC, Russell may remove the stock at a nominal price of
$0.0001.
Stock Distributions and distributions in specie— A price adjustment for stock distributions is applied on the ex-date of the distribution. Where Russell is able to value a distribution in specie prior to the ex-date, a price adjustment
is made to the company paying the dividend at the open on the ex-date. If no valuation of the distribution exists prior to the ex-date, no price adjustment is applied. Where the company whose holders are receiving the distribution is an index
member, its shares will be increased according to the terms of the distribution. If such company is not an index member, the distributed shares will be added to the Russell 2000® Index until they have been settled and have listed, at
which point they will be removed at the last traded price giving appropriate notice.
Special Cash Dividends — If a constituent pays out a special cash
dividend, the price of the stock is adjusted to deduct the dividend amount before the open on the ex-date. No adjustment for regular cash dividends is made in the price return calculation of the Russell 2000® Index.
Updates to Shares Outstanding and Free Float — Russell reviews the
Russell 2000® Index quarterly for updates to shares outstanding and to free floats used in calculating the Russell 2000® Index. The changes are implemented quarterly in March, June, September and December after the close on
the third Friday of such month. The June reconstitution will be implemented on the last Friday of June (unless the
last Friday occurs on the 29th or 30th of the month, in which case reconstitution will occur on the Friday prior).
In March, September and December shares outstanding and free floats are updated to reflect (i) changes greater than 1% for cumulative shares in issue
changes and (ii) changes greater than 3% for cumulative free float changes. In addition, a constituent with a free float of 15% or below will not be subject to the 3% change threshold and will instead be updated if the change is greater than 1%.
Updates to shares outstanding and free floats will be implemented each June regardless of size (i.e., the percentage change thresholds above will not be applied). Russell implements the June updates using data sourced primarily from the
companies’ publicly available information filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Outside of the quarterly update cycle, outstanding shares and free float will be updated with at least two days’ notice if prompted by primary or
secondary offerings if (i) there is a USD $1 billion investable market capitalization change related to a primary/secondary offering or (ii) there is a resultant 5% change in index shares related to a primary or secondary offering and a USD $250 million investable market capitalization change. These changes are implemented after the close on the day that the subscription period closes, assuming two
days’ notice can be provided. If two days’ notice cannot be provided prior to the end of the subscription period, the change will still proceed with two days’ notice and will be implemented at the earliest opportunity. If discovery of the event
occurs more than two days after the close of the subscription period, the changes are deferred until the quarterly review cycle.
If a company distributes shares of an additional share class to its existing shareholders through a mandatory corporate action,
the additional share class will be evaluated for separate index membership. The new share class will be deemed eligible if the market capitalization of the distributed shares meets the minimum size requirement (the market capitalization of the
smallest member of the Russell 3000E Index from the previous rebalance as adjusted for performance to date). If the additional share class is not eligible at the time of distribution, it will not be added to the Russell 2000® Index.
License Agreement between Frank Russell Company (doing business as Russell Investment Group) and GS Finance
Corp.
Frank Russell Company doing business as Russell Investment Group (“Russell”) and Goldman Sachs International have entered into a
non-exclusive license agreement, granting GS Finance Corp., in exchange for a fee, permission to use the Russell 2000® Index in connection with the offer and sale of the notes. GS Finance Corp. is not affiliated with Russell; the only
relationship between Russell and GS Finance Corp. is the licensing of the use of the Russell 2000® Index (a trademark of Russell) and trademarks relating to the Russell 2000® Index.
GS Finance Corp. does not accept any responsibility for the calculation, maintenance or publication of the Russell 2000®
Index or any successor index.
The notes are not sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by Russell. Russell makes no representation or warranty, express or
implied, to the owners of the notes or any member of the public regarding the advisability of investing in securities generally or in the notes particularly or the ability of the Russell 2000® Index to track general stock market
performance or a segment of the same. Russell’s publication of the Russell 2000® Index in no way suggests or implies an opinion by Russell as to the advisability of investment in any or all of the securities upon which the Russell 2000®
Index is based. Russell’s only relationship to GS Finance Corp. is the licensing of certain trademarks and trade names of Russell and of the Russell 2000® Index which is determined, composed and calculated by Russell without regard to
GS Finance Corp. or the notes. Russell is not responsible for and has not reviewed the notes nor any associated literature or publications and Russell makes no representation or warranty express or implied as to their accuracy or completeness, or
otherwise. Russell reserves the right, at any time and without notice, to alter, amend, terminate or in any way change the Russell 2000® Index. Russell has no obligation or liability in connection with the administration, marketing or
trading of the notes.
RUSSELL DOES NOT GUARANTEE THE ACCURACY AND/OR THE COMPLETENESS OF THE RUSSELL 2000® INDEX OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN AND RUSSELL SHALL
HAVE NO
LIABILITY FOR ANY ERRORS, OMISSIONS, OR INTERRUPTIONS THEREIN. RUSSELL MAKES NO WARRANTY, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, AS TO RESULTS TO BE OBTAINED BY GS
FINANCE CORP., INVESTORS, OWNERS OF THE NOTES, OR ANY OTHER PERSON OR ENTITY FROM THE USE OF THE RUSSELL 2000® INDEX OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN. RUSSELL MAKES NO EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, AND EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES
OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR USE WITH RESPECT TO THE RUSSELL 2000® INDEX OR ANY DATA INCLUDED THEREIN. WITHOUT LIMITING ANY OF THE FOREGOING, IN NO EVENT SHALL RUSSELL HAVE ANY LIABILITY FOR ANY SPECIAL,
PUNITIVE, INDIRECT, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING LOST PROFITS), EVEN IF NOTIFIED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.
The S&P 500® Index
The S&P 500® Index includes a representative sample of 500 companies in leading industries of the U.S. economy.
The 500 companies are not the 500 largest companies listed on the NYSE and not all 500 companies are listed on the NYSE. S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC (“S&P”) chooses companies for inclusion in the S&P 500® Index with an aim of
achieving a distribution by broad industry groupings that approximates the distribution of these groupings in the common stock population of the U.S. equity market. Although the S&P 500® Index contains 500 constituent companies,
at any one time it may contain greater than 500 constituent trading lines since some companies included in the S&P 500® Index prior to July 31, 2017 may be represented by multiple share class lines in the S&P 500®
Index. The S&P 500® Index is calculated, maintained and published by S&P and is part of the S&P Dow Jones Indices family of indices. Additional information is available on the following websites:
us.spindices.com/indices/equity/sp-500 and spdji.com/. We are not incorporating by reference the websites or any material they include in this prospectus supplement.
S&P intends for the S&P 500® Index to provide a performance benchmark for the large-cap U.S. equity markets. Constituent changes
are made on an as-needed basis and there is no schedule for constituent reviews. Constituent changes are generally announced one to five business days prior to the change. Relevant criteria for additions to the S&P 500® Index that
are employed by S&P include: the company proposed for addition should have an unadjusted company market capitalization of $6.1 billion or more (for spin-offs, eligibility is determined using when-issued prices, if available); using composite
pricing and volume, the ratio of annual dollar value traded in the proposed constituent to float-adjusted market capitalization of that company should be 1.00 or greater and the stock should trade a minimum of 250,000 shares in each of the six
months leading up to the evaluation date; the company must be a U.S. company (characterized as a Form 10-K filer with its U.S. portion of fixed assets and revenues constituting a plurality of the total and with a primary listing of the common
stock on the NYSE, NYSE Arca, NYSE American (formerly NYSE MKT), NASDAQ Global Select Market, NASDAQ Select Market, NASDAQ Capital Market, Bats BZX, Bats BYX, Bats EDGA, Bats EDGX or IEX (each, an “eligible exchange”)); the proposed constituent
has a public float of 50% or more of its stock; the inclusion of the company will contribute to sector balance in the S&P 500® Index relative to sector balance in the market in the relevant
market capitalization range; financial viability (the sum of the most recent four consecutive quarters’ Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) earnings (net income excluding discontinued operations) should be positive as should the most
recent quarter); and, for IPOs, the company must be traded on an eligible exchange for at least twelve months. In addition, constituents of the S&P MidCap 400® Index and the S&P SmallCap 600® Index can be added to
the S&P 500® Index without meeting the financial viability, public float and/or liquidity eligibility criteria if the S&P Index Committee decides that such an addition will enhance the representativeness of the S&P 500®
Index as a market benchmark. Certain types of organizational structures and securities are always excluded, including business development companies (BDCs), limited partnerships, master limited partnerships, limited liability companies (LLCs),
OTC bulletin board issues, closed-end funds, ETFs, ETNs, royalty trusts, tracking stocks, preferred stock and convertible preferred stock, unit trusts, equity warrants, convertible bonds, investment trusts, rights and American depositary receipts
(ADRs). Stocks are deleted from the S&P 500® Index when they are involved in mergers, acquisitions or significant restructurings such that they no longer meet the inclusion criteria, and when they substantially violate one or more
of the addition criteria. Stocks that are delisted or moved to the pink sheets or the bulletin board are removed, and those that
experience a trading halt may be retained or removed in S&P’s discretion. S&P evaluates additions and deletions with a view to maintaining
S&P 500® Index continuity.
For constituents included in the S&P 500® Index prior to July 31, 2017, all publicly listed multiple share class
lines are included separately in the S&P 500® Index, subject to, in the case of any such share class line, that share class line satisfying the liquidity and float criteria discussed above and subject to certain exceptions. It is
possible that one listed share class line of a company may be included in the S&P 500® Index while a second listed share class line of the same company is excluded. For companies that issue a second publicly traded share class to
index share class holders, the newly issued share class line is considered for inclusion if the event is mandatory and the market capitalization of the distributed class is not considered to be de minimis.
As of July 31, 2017, companies with multiple share class lines are no longer eligible for inclusion in the S&P 500® Index.
Constituents of the S&P 500® Index prior to July 31, 2017 with multiple share class lines will be grandfathered in and continue to be included in the S&P 500® Index. If an S&P 500® Index constituent
reorganizes into a multiple share class line structure, that company will be reviewed for continued inclusion in the S&P 500® Index at the discretion of the S&P Index Committee.
As of January 15, 2019, the 500 companies included in the S&P 500® Index were divided into eleven Global Industry Classification
Sectors. The Global Industry Classification Sectors include (with the approximate percentage currently included in such sectors indicated in parentheses): Communication Services (10.43%), Consumer Discretionary (10.16%), Consumer Staples (7.26%),
Energy (5.52%), Financials (13.39%), Health Care (15.24%), Industrials (9.27%), Information Technology (19.90%), Materials (2.68%), Real Estate (2.96%) and Utilities (3.19%). (Sector designations are determined by the index sponsor using criteria
it has selected or developed. Index sponsors may use very different standards for determining sector designations. In addition, many companies operate in a number of sectors, but are listed in only one sector and the basis on which that sector is
selected may also differ. As a result, sector comparisons between indices with different index sponsors may reflect differences in methodology as well as actual differences in the sector composition of the indices.) As of the close of business on
September 21, 2018, S&P and MSCI, Inc. updated the Global Industry Classification Sector structure. Among other things, the update broadened the Telecommunications Services sector and renamed it the Communication Services sector. The renamed
sector includes the previously existing Telecommunication Services Industry group, as well as the Media Industry group, which was moved from the Consumer Discretionary sector and renamed the Media & Entertainment Industry group. The Media
& Entertainment Industry group contains three industries: Media, Entertainment and Interactive Media & Services. The Media industry continues to consist of the Advertising, Broadcasting, Cable & Satellite and Publishing
sub-industries. The Entertainment industry contains the Movies & Entertainment sub-industry (which includes online entertainment streaming companies in addition to companies previously classified in such industry prior to September 21, 2018)
and the Interactive Home Entertainment sub-industry (which includes companies previously classified in the Home Entertainment Software sub-industry prior to September 21, 2018 (when the Home Entertainment Software sub-industry was a sub-industry
in the Information Technology sector)), as well as producers of interactive gaming products, including mobile gaming applications). The Interactive Media & Services industry and sub-industry includes companies engaged in content and
information creation or distribution through proprietary platforms, where revenues are derived primarily through pay-per-click advertisements, and includes search engines, social media and networking platforms, online classifieds and online
review companies. The Global Industry Classification Sector structure changes are effective for the S&P 500® Index as of the open of business on September 24, 2018 to coincide with the September 2018 quarterly rebalancing.
Calculation of the S&P 500® Index
The S&P 500® Index is calculated using a base-weighted aggregative methodology. The value of the S&P 500® Index on any
day for which an index value is published is determined by a fraction, the numerator of which is the aggregate of the market price of each stock in the S&P 500® Index times the number of shares of such stock included in the S&P 500® Index, and the denominator of which is the divisor, which is described more fully below. The “market value” of any index stock is the product of the
market price per share of that stock times the number of the
then-outstanding shares of such index stock that are then included in the S&P 500® Index.
The S&P 500® Index is also sometimes called a “base-weighted aggregative index” because of its use of a divisor.
The “divisor” is a value calculated by S&P that is intended to maintain conformity in index values over time and is adjusted for all changes in the index stocks’ share capital after the “base date” as described below. The level of the S&P
500® Index reflects the total market value of all index stocks relative to the S&P 500® Index’s base date of 1941-43.
In addition, the S&P 500® Index is float-adjusted, meaning that the share counts used in calculating the S&P
500® Index reflect only those shares available to investors rather than all of a company’s outstanding shares. S&P seeks to exclude shares held by certain shareholders concerned with the control of a company, a group that generally
includes the following: officers and directors and related individuals whose holdings are publicly disclosed, private equity, venture capital, special equity firms, publicly traded companies that hold shares for control in another company,
strategic partners, holders of restricted shares, employee stock ownership plans, employee and family trusts, foundations associated with the company, holders of unlisted share classes of stock, government entities at all levels (except
government retirement or pension funds) and any individual person listed as a 5% or greater stakeholder in a company as reported in regulatory filings (collectively, “control holders”). To this end, S&P excludes all share-holdings (other than
depositary banks, pension funds, mutual funds, exchange traded fund providers, 401(k) plans of the company, government retirement and pension funds, investment funds of insurance companies, asset managers and investment funds, independent
foundations, savings plans and investment plans) with a position greater than 5% of the outstanding shares of a company from the float-adjusted share count to be used in S&P 500® Index calculations.
The exclusion is accomplished by calculating an Investable Weight Factor (IWF) for each stock that is part of the numerator of
the float-adjusted index fraction described above:
IWF = (available float shares)/(total shares outstanding)
where available float shares is defined as total shares outstanding less shares held by control holders. In most cases, an IWF is
reported to the nearest one percentage point. For companies with multiple share class lines, a separate IWF is calculated for each share class line.
Maintenance of the S&P 500® Index
In order to keep the S&P 500® Index comparable over time S&P engages in an index maintenance process. The
S&P 500® Index maintenance process involves changing the constituents as discussed above, and also involves maintaining quality assurance processes and procedures, adjusting the number of shares used to calculate the S&P 500®
Index, monitoring and completing the adjustments for company additions and deletions, adjusting for stock splits and stock dividends and adjusting for other corporate actions. In addition to its daily governance of indices and maintenance of the
S&P 500® Index methodology, at least once within any 12 month period, the S&P Index Committee reviews the S&P 500® Index methodology to ensure the S&P 500® Index continues to achieve the stated
objective, and that the data and methodology remain effective. The S&P Index Committee may at times consult with investors, market participants, security issuers included in or potentially included in the S&P 500® Index, or
investment and financial experts.
Divisor Adjustments
The two types of adjustments primarily used by S&P are divisor adjustments and adjustments to the number of shares (including float adjustments)
used to calculate the S&P 500® Index. Set forth below is a table of certain corporate events and their resulting effect on the divisor and the share count. If a corporate event requires an adjustment to the divisor, that event has
the effect of altering the market value of the affected index stock and consequently of altering the aggregate market value of the index stocks following the event. In order that the level of the S&P 500® Index not be affected by
the altered market value (which could be an increase or decrease) of the affected index stock, S&P generally derives a new divisor by dividing the post-event market value of the index stocks by the pre-event index value, which has the effect
of reducing the S&P 500® Index’s post-event value to the pre-event level.
Changes to the Number of Shares of a Constituent
The S&P 500® Index maintenance process also involves tracking the changes in the number of shares included for each
of the index companies. The timing of adjustments to the number of shares depends on the type of event causing the change, and whether the change represents 5% or more of the total share count (for companies with multiple share class lines, the
5% threshold is based on each individual share class line rather than total company shares). Changes as a result of mergers or acquisitions are implemented when the transaction occurs. At S&P’s discretion, however, de minimis merger and
acquisition changes may be accumulated and implemented with the updates made at the quarterly share updates as described below. Changes in a constituent’s total shares of 5% or more due to public offerings (which must be underwritten, have a
publicly available prospectus or prospectus summary filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission and include a public confirmation that the offering has been completed) are implemented as soon as reasonably possible. Other changes of 5% or
more are made weekly and are announced on Fridays for implementation after the close of trading on the following Friday. For changes of less than 5%, on the third Friday of the last month in each calendar quarter, S&P updates the share totals
of companies in the S&P 500® Index as required by any changes in the number of shares outstanding. S&P implements a share / IWF freeze beginning after the market close on the Tuesday preceding the second Friday of each
quarterly rebalancing month and ending after the market close on the third Friday of the quarterly rebalancing month. During this frozen period, shares and IWFs are not changed except for certain corporate action events (merger activity, stock
splits and rights offerings).
Adjustments for Corporate Actions
There is a large range of corporate actions that may affect companies included in the S&P 500® Index. Certain
corporate actions require S&P to recalculate the share count or the float adjustment or to make an adjustment to the divisor to prevent the value of the S&P 500® Index from changing as a result of the corporate action. This
helps ensure that the movement of the S&P 500® Index does not reflect the corporate actions of individual companies in the S&P 500® Index.
Spin-Offs
As a general policy, a spin-off security is added to the S&P 500® Index at a zero price at the market close of the
day before the ex-date (with no divisor adjustment). The spin-off security will remain in the S&P 500® Index if it meets all eligibility criteria. If the spin-off security is determined ineligible to remain in the S&P 500®
Index, it will generally be removed after at least one day of regular way trading (with a divisor adjustment). If there is a gap between the ex-date and distribution date (or payable date), or if the spin-off security does not trade regular way
on the ex-date, the spin-off security is kept in the S&P 500® Index until the spin-off security begins trading regular way.
Several additional types of corporate actions, and their related adjustments, are listed in the table below.
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Corporate Action
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Share Count Revision
Required?
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Divisor Adjustment Required?
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Stock split
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Yes – share count is revised to reflect new count.
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No – share count and price changes are off-setting
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Change in shares outstanding (secondary issuance, share repurchase and/or share buy-back)
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Yes – share count is revised to reflect new count.
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Yes
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Special dividends
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No
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Yes – calculation assumes that share price drops by the amount of the dividend; divisor adjustment reflects this change in index market value
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Change in IWF
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No
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Yes – divisor change reflects the change in market value caused by the change to an IWF
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Company added to or deleted from the S&P 500® Index
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No
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Yes – divisor is adjusted by the net change in market value, calculated as the shares issued multiplied by the price paid
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Rights Offering
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No
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Yes – divisor adjustment reflects increase in market capitalization (calculation assumes that offering is fully subscribed)
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Recalculation Policy
S&P reserves the right to recalculate and republish the S&P 500® Index at its discretion in the event one of the following issues
has occurred: (1) incorrect or revised closing price of one or more constituent securities; (2) missed corporate event; (3) incorrect application of corporate action or index methodology; (4) late announcement of a corporate event; or (5)
incorrect calculation or data entry error. The decision to recalculate the S&P 500® Index is made at the discretion of the index manager and/or index committee, as further discussed below. The potential market impact or disruption
resulting from the potential recalculation is considered when making any such decision. In the event of an incorrect closing price, a missed corporate event or a misapplied corporate action, a late announcement of a corporate event, or an
incorrect calculation or data entry error that is discovered within two trading days of its occurrence, the index manager may, at his or her discretion, recalculate the S&P 500® Index without involving the index committee. In the
event any such event is discovered beyond the two trading day period, the index committee shall decide whether the S&P 500® Index should be recalculated. In the event of an incorrect application of the methodology that results in
the incorrect composition and/or weighting of index constituents, the index committee shall determine whether or not to recalculate the S&P 500® Index following specified guidelines. In the event that the S&P 500®
Index is recalculated, it shall be done within a reasonable timeframe following the detection and review of the issue.
Calculations and Pricing Disruptions
Closing levels for the S&P 500® Index are calculated by S&P based on the closing price of the individual
constituents of the S&P 500® Index as set by their primary exchange. Closing prices are received by S&P from one of its third party vendors and verified by comparing them with prices from an alternative vendor. The vendors
receive the closing price from the primary exchanges. Real-time intraday prices are calculated similarly without a second verification. Prices used for the calculation of real time index values are based on the “Consolidated Tape”. The
Consolidated Tape is an aggregation of trades for each constituent over all regional exchanges and trading venues and includes the primary exchange. If there is a failure or interruption on one or more exchanges, real-time calculations will
continue as long as the “Consolidated Tape” is operational.
If an interruption is not resolved prior to the market close, official closing prices will be determined by following the
hierarchy set out in NYSE Rule 123C. A notice is published on the S&P website at spdji.com indicating any changes to the prices used in S&P 500®
Index calculations. In extreme circumstances, S&P may decide to delay index adjustments or not publish the S&P 500® Index. Real-time indices are not restated.
Unexpected Exchange Closures
An unexpected market/exchange closure occurs when a market/exchange fully or partially fails to open or trading is temporarily
halted. This can apply to a single exchange or to a market as a whole, when all of the primary exchanges are closed and/or not trading. Unexpected market/exchange closures are usually due to unforeseen circumstances, such as natural disasters,
inclement weather, outages, or other events.
To a large degree, S&P is dependent on the exchanges to provide guidance in the event of an unexpected
exchange closure. S&P’s decision making is dependent on exchange guidance regarding pricing and mandatory corporate actions.
NYSE Rule 123C provides closing contingency procedures for determining an official closing price for listed
securities if the exchange is unable to conduct a closing transaction in one or more securities due to a system or technical issue.
3:00 PM ET is the deadline for an exchange to determine its plan of action regarding an outage scenario. As such, S&P also
uses 3:00 PM ET as the cutoff.
If all major exchanges fail to open or unexpectedly halt trading intraday due to unforeseen circumstances, S&P will take the
following actions:
Market Disruption Prior to Open of Trading:
(i) If all exchanges indicate that trading will not open for a given day, S&P will treat the day as an unscheduled market holiday. The decision will be communicated to clients as soon as possible through the normal channels.
Indices containing multiple markets will be calculated as normal, provided that at least one market is open that day. Indices which only contain closed markets will not be calculated.
(ii) If exchanges indicate that trading, although delayed, will open for a given day, S&P will begin index calculation when the exchanges open.
Market Disruption Intraday:
(i) If exchanges indicate that trading will not resume for a given day, the S&P 500® Index level will be calculated using prices determined by the exchanges based on NYSE Rule 123C. Intraday S&P 500®
Index values will continue to use the last traded composite price until the primary exchange publishes official closing prices.
License Agreement between S&P and GS Finance Corp.
The S&P 500® Index is a product of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC, and has been licensed for use
by GS Finance Corp. (“Goldman”). Standard & Poor’s® and S&P® are registered trademarks of Standard & Poor’s Financial Services LLC; Dow Jones® is a registered trademark of Dow Jones Trademark Holdings
LLC (“Dow Jones”) and these trademarks have been licensed for use by S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC and sublicensed for certain purposes by Goldman. Goldman’s notes are
not sponsored, endorsed, sold or promoted by S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC, Dow Jones, Standard & Poor’s Financial Services LLC or any of their respective affiliates (collectively, “S&P Dow Jones Indices”). S&P Dow Jones Indices makes
no representation or warranty, express or implied, to the owners of the notes or any member of the public regarding the advisability of investing in securities generally or in the notes particularly or the ability of the S&P 500®
Index to track general market performance. S&P Dow Jones Indices’ only relationship to Goldman with respect to the S&P 500® Index is the licensing of the S&P 500® Index and certain trademarks, service marks
and/or trade names of S&P Dow Jones Indices and/or its licensors. The S&P 500® Index is determined, composed and calculated by S&P Dow Jones Indices without regard to Goldman or the notes. S&P Dow Jones Indices have no obligation to take the needs of Goldman or the owners of the notes into consideration in determining, composing or calculating the S&P 500® Index.
S&P Dow Jones Indices are not responsible for and have not participated in the determination of the prices, and amount of the notes or the timing of the issuance or sale of the notes or in the determination or calculation of the equation by
which the notes are to be converted into cash. S&P Dow Jones Indices have no obligation or liability in connection with the administration, marketing or trading of the notes. There is no assurance that investment products based on the S&P
500® Index will accurately track index performance or provide positive investment returns. S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC is not an investment advisor. Inclusion of a security within an index is not a recommendation by S&P Dow Jones
Indices to buy, sell, or hold such security, nor is it considered to be investment advice.
S&P DOW JONES INDICES DOES NOT GUARANTEE THE ADEQUACY, ACCURACY, TIMELINESS AND/OR THE COMPLETENESS OF THE S&P 500® INDEX OR ANY
DATA RELATED THERETO OR ANY COMMUNICATION, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO ORAL OR WRITTEN COMMUNICATION (INCLUDING ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATIONS) WITH RESPECT THERETO. S&P DOW JONES INDICES SHALL NOT BE SUBJECT TO ANY DAMAGES OR LIABILITY FOR ANY
ERRORS, OMISSIONS, OR DELAYS THEREIN. S&P DOW JONES INDICES MAKE NO EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, AND EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES, OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR USE OR AS TO RESULTS TO BE OBTAINED BY
GOLDMAN, OWNERS OF THE NOTES, OR ANY OTHER PERSON OR ENTITY FROM THE USE OF THE S&P 500® INDEX OR WITH RESPECT TO ANY DATA RELATED THERETO. WITHOUT LIMITING ANY OF THE FOREGOING, IN NO EVENT WHATSOEVER SHALL S&P DOW JONES
INDICES BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, PUNITIVE, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO LOSS OF PROFITS, TRADING LOSSES, LOST TIME OR GOODWILL, EVEN IF THEY HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES,
WHETHER IN CONTRACT, TORT, STRICT LIABILITY, OR OTHERWISE. THERE ARE NO THIRD PARTY BENEFICIARIES OF ANY AGREEMENTS OR ARRANGEMENTS BETWEEN S&P DOW JONES INDICES AND GOLDMAN, OTHER THAN THE LICENSORS OF S&P DOW JONES INDICES.
Historical Closing Levels of the Indices
The closing levels of the indices have fluctuated in the past and may, in the future, experience significant fluctuations. Any
historical upward or downward trend in the closing level of any index during the period shown below is not an indication that such index is more or less likely to increase or decrease at any time during the life of your notes.
You should not take the historical closing levels of an
index as an indication of the future performance of an index. We cannot give you any assurance that the future performance of any index or the index stocks will result in you receiving the outstanding face amount of your notes on the
stated maturity date.
Neither we nor any of our affiliates make any representation to you as to the performance of the indices. Before investing in
the offered notes, you should consult publicly available information to determine the relevant index levels between the date of this prospectus supplement and the date of your purchase of the offered notes. The actual performance of an index
over the life of the offered notes, as well as the cash settlement amount at maturity may bear little relation to the historical levels shown below.
The graphs below show the daily historical closing levels of each index from January 28, 2009 through January 28, 2019. We obtained the levels in the
graphs below from Bloomberg Financial Services, without independent verification. Although the official closing levels of the Russell 2000® Index are published to six decimal places by the index sponsor, Bloomberg Financial Services
reports the levels of the Russell 2000® Index to fewer decimal places.
Historical Performance of the Russell 2000® Index
Historical Performance of the S&P 500® Index
The following section supplements the discussion of U.S. federal income taxation in the accompanying prospectus supplement.
The following section is the opinion of Sidley Austin llp,
counsel to GS Finance Corp. and The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. In addition, it is the opinion of Sidley Austin llp that the characterization of the notes for U.S.
federal income tax purposes that will be required under the terms of the notes, as discussed below, is a reasonable interpretation of current law.
This section does not apply to you if you are a member of a class of holders subject to special rules, such as:
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a dealer in securities or currencies;
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a trader in securities that elects to use a mark-to-market method of accounting for your securities holdings;
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a bank;
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a life insurance company;
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a tax exempt organization;
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a partnership;
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an accrual method taxpayer subject to special tax accounting rules as a result of its use of financial statements;
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a regulated investment company;
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a person that owns a note as a hedge or that is hedged against interest rate risks;
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a person that owns a note as part of a straddle or conversion transaction for tax purposes; or
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a United States holder (as defined below) whose functional currency for tax purposes is not the U.S. dollar.
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Although this section is based on the U.S. Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, its legislative history, existing and
proposed regulations under the Internal Revenue Code, published rulings and court decisions, all as currently in effect, no statutory, judicial or administrative authority directly addresses how your notes should be treated for U.S. federal
income tax purposes, and as a result, the U.S. federal income tax consequences of your investment in your notes are uncertain. Moreover, these laws are subject to change, possibly on a retroactive basis.
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You should consult your tax advisor concerning the U.S. federal income tax and any other applicable tax consequences of
your investments in the notes, including the application of state, local or other tax laws and the possible effects of changes in federal or other tax laws.
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United States Holders
This section applies to you only if you are a United States holder that holds your notes as a capital asset for tax purposes. You are a United
States holder if you are a beneficial owner of each of your notes and you are:
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a citizen or resident of the United States;
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a domestic corporation;
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an estate whose income is subject to U.S. federal income tax regardless of its source; or
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a trust if a United States court can exercise primary supervision over the trust’s administration and one or more United States persons are authorized to control all substantial
decisions of the trust.
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Tax Treatment. You will be obligated pursuant to the
terms of the notes — in the absence of a change in law, an administrative determination or a judicial ruling to the contrary — to characterize your notes for all tax purposes as pre-paid derivative contracts in respect of the indices. Except as
otherwise stated below, the discussion herein assumes that the notes will be so treated.
Upon the sale, exchange, redemption or maturity of your notes, you should recognize capital gain or loss equal to the difference, if any, between
the amount of cash you receive at such time and your tax basis in your notes. Your tax basis in the notes will generally be equal to the amount that you paid for the notes. If you hold your notes for more than one year, the gain or loss generally
will be long-term capital gain or loss. If you hold your notes for one year or less, the gain or loss generally will be short-term capital gain or loss. Short-term capital gains are generally subject to tax at the marginal tax rates applicable
to ordinary income.
No statutory, judicial or administrative authority directly discusses how your notes should be treated for U.S. federal income
tax purposes. As a result, the U.S. federal income tax consequences of your investment in the notes are uncertain and alternative characterizations are possible. Accordingly, we urge you to consult your tax advisor in determining the tax
consequences of an investment in your notes in your particular circumstances, including the application of state, local or other tax laws and the possible effects of changes in federal or other tax laws.
Alternative Treatments. There is no judicial or administrative
authority discussing how your notes should be treated for U.S. federal income tax purposes. Therefore, the Internal Revenue Service might assert that a treatment other than that described above is more appropriate. For example, the Internal
Revenue Service could treat your notes as a single debt instrument subject to special rules governing contingent payment debt instruments. Under those rules, the amount of interest you are required to take into account for each accrual period
would be determined by constructing a projected payment schedule for the notes and applying rules similar to those for accruing original issue discount on a hypothetical noncontingent debt instrument with that projected payment schedule. This
method is applied by first determining the comparable yield – i.e., the yield at which we would issue a noncontingent fixed rate debt instrument with terms and conditions similar to your notes – and then determining a payment schedule as of the
issue date that would produce the comparable yield. These rules may have the effect of requiring you to include interest in income in respect of your notes prior to your receipt of cash attributable to that income.
If the rules governing contingent payment debt instruments apply, any gain you recognize upon the sale, exchange, redemption or maturity of your
notes would be treated as ordinary interest income. Any loss you recognize at that time would be ordinary loss to the extent of interest you included as income in the current or previous taxable years in respect of your notes, and, thereafter,
capital loss.
If the rules governing contingent payment debt instruments apply, special rules would apply to a person who purchases notes at a price other than
the adjusted issue price as determined for tax purposes.
It is also possible that your notes could be treated in the manner described above, except that any gain or loss that you recognize at maturity or
upon redemption would be treated as ordinary gain or loss. You should consult your tax advisor as to the tax consequences of such characterization and any possible alternative characterizations of your notes for U.S. federal income tax purposes.
It is possible that the Internal Revenue Service could seek to characterize your notes in a manner that results in tax consequences to you that are
different from those described above. You should consult your tax advisor as to the tax consequences of any possible alternative characterizations of your notes for U.S. federal income tax purposes.
Possible Change in Law
On December 7, 2007, the Internal Revenue Service released a notice stating that the Internal Revenue Service and the Treasury Department are actively considering
issuing guidance regarding the proper U.S. federal income tax treatment of an instrument such as the offered notes, including whether holders should be required to accrue ordinary income on a current basis and whether gain or loss should be
ordinary or
capital. It is not possible to determine what guidance they will ultimately issue, if any. It is possible, however, that under such guidance,
holders of the notes will ultimately be required to accrue income currently and this could be applied on a retroactive basis. The Internal Revenue Service and the Treasury Department are also considering other relevant issues, including whether
foreign holders of such instruments should be subject to withholding tax on any deemed income accruals and whether the special “constructive ownership rules” of Section 1260 of the Internal Revenue Code might be applied to such instruments.
Holders are urged to consult their tax advisors concerning the significance, and the potential impact, of the above considerations. Except to the extent otherwise provided by law, we intend to continue treating the notes for U.S. federal income
tax purposes in accordance with the treatment described above under “Tax Treatment” unless and until such time as Congress, the Treasury Department or the Internal Revenue Service determine that some other treatment is more appropriate. You are
urged to consult your tax advisor as to the possibility that any legislative or administrative action may adversely affect the tax treatment and the value of your notes.
Furthermore, in 2007, legislation was introduced in Congress that, if enacted, would have required holders that acquired instruments such as your
notes after the bill was enacted to accrue interest income over the term of such instruments even though there will be no interest payments over the term of such instruments. It is not possible to predict whether a similar or identical bill will
be enacted in the future, or whether any such bill would affect the tax treatment of your notes.
It is impossible to predict what any such legislation or administrative or regulatory guidance might provide, and whether the effective date of any
legislation or guidance will affect notes that were issued before the date that such legislation or guidance is issued. You are urged to consult your tax advisor as to the possibility that any legislative or administrative action may adversely
affect the tax treatment of your notes.
Backup Withholding and Information Reporting
Please see the discussion under “United States Taxation — Taxation of Debt Securities — Backup Withholding and Information Reporting—United States
Holders” in the accompanying prospectus for a description of the applicability of the backup withholding and information reporting rules to payments made on your notes.
United States Alien Holders
This section applies to you only if you are a United States alien holder. You are a United States alien holder if you are the beneficial owner of
notes and are, for U.S. federal income tax purposes:
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a nonresident alien individual;
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a foreign corporation; or
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an estate or trust that in either case is not subject to U.S. federal income tax on a net income basis on income or gain from the notes.
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You will be subject to generally applicable information reporting and backup withholding requirements as discussed in the accompanying prospectus
under “United States Taxation — Taxation of Debt Securities — Backup Withholding and Information Reporting — United States Alien Holders” with respect to payments on your notes at maturity or upon redemption and, notwithstanding that we do not
intend to treat the notes as debt for tax purposes, we intend to backup withhold on such payments with respect to your notes unless you comply with the requirements necessary to avoid backup withholding on debt instruments (in which case you will
not be subject to such backup withholding) as set forth under “United States Taxation — Taxation of Debt Securities — United States Alien Holders” in the accompanying prospectus.
Furthermore, on December 7, 2007, the Internal Revenue Service released Notice 2008-2 soliciting comments from the public on various issues, including whether
instruments such as your notes should be subject to withholding. It is therefore possible that rules will be issued in the future, possibly with retroactive effect, that would cause payments on your notes at maturity or upon redemption to be
subject to withholding, even if you comply with certification requirements as to your foreign status.
As discussed above, alternative characterizations of the notes for U.S. federal income tax purposes are possible. Should an alternative
characterization of the notes, by reason of a change or clarification of the law, by regulation or otherwise, cause payments at maturity or upon redemption with respect to the notes to become subject to withholding tax, we will withhold tax at
the applicable statutory rate and we will not make payments of any additional amounts. Prospective United States alien holders of the notes should consult their tax advisors in this regard.
In addition, the Treasury Department has issued regulations under which amounts paid or deemed paid on certain financial instruments (“871(m)
financial instruments”) that are treated as attributable to U.S.-source dividends could be treated, in whole or in part depending on the circumstances, as a “dividend equivalent” payment that is subject to tax at a rate of 30% (or a lower rate
under an applicable treaty), which in the case of any amounts you receive upon the sale, exchange, redemption or maturity of your notes, could be collected via withholding. If these regulations were to apply to the notes, we may be required to
withhold such taxes if any U.S.-source dividends are paid on the stocks included in the indices during the term of the notes. We could also require you to make certifications (e.g., an applicable Internal Revenue Service Form W-8) prior to the maturity of the notes in order to avoid or minimize withholding obligations, and we could withhold accordingly (subject to your potential right to claim a refund from the
Internal Revenue Service) if such certifications were not received or were not satisfactory. If withholding was required, we would not be required to pay any additional amounts with respect to amounts so withheld. These regulations generally will
apply to 871(m) financial instruments (or a combination of financial instruments treated as having been entered into in connection with each other) issued (or significantly modified and treated as retired and reissued) on or after January 1,
2021, but will also apply to certain 871(m) financial instruments (or a combination of financial instruments treated as having been entered into in connection with each other) that have a delta (as defined in the applicable Treasury regulations)
of one and are issued (or significantly modified and treated as retired and reissued) on or after January 1, 2017. In addition, these regulations will not apply to financial instruments that reference a “qualified index” (as defined in the
regulations). We have determined that, as of the issue date of your notes, your notes will not be subject to withholding under these rules. In certain limited circumstances, however, you should be aware that it is possible for United States
alien holders to be liable for tax under these rules with respect to a combination of transactions treated as having been entered into in connection with each other even when no withholding is required. You should consult your tax advisor
concerning these regulations, subsequent official guidance and regarding any other possible alternative characterizations of your notes for U.S. federal income tax purposes.
Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) Withholding
Pursuant to Treasury regulations, Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) withholding (as described in “United States
Taxation—Taxation of Debt Securities—Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) Withholding” in the accompanying prospectus) will generally apply to obligations that are issued on or after July 1, 2014; therefore, the notes will generally be
subject to the FATCA withholding rules. Pursuant to recently proposed regulations, the Treasury Department has indicated its intent to eliminate the requirements under FATCA of withholding on gross proceeds from the sale, exchange, maturity or
other disposition of relevant financial instruments. The Treasury Department has indicated that taxpayers may rely on these proposed regulations pending their finalization.
This section is only relevant to you if you are an insurance company or the fiduciary of a pension plan or
an employee benefit plan (including a governmental plan, an IRA or a Keogh Plan) proposing to invest in the notes.
The U.S. Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (“ERISA”) and the U.S. Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as
amended (the “Code”), prohibit certain transactions (“prohibited transactions”) involving the assets of an employee benefit plan that is subject to the fiduciary responsibility provisions of ERISA or Section 4975 of the Code (including individual
retirement accounts, Keogh plans and other plans described in Section 4975(e)(1) of the Code) (a “Plan”) and certain persons who are “parties in interest” (within the meaning of ERISA) or “disqualified persons” (within the meaning of the Code)
with respect to the Plan; governmental plans may be subject to similar prohibitions unless an exemption applies to the transaction. The assets of a Plan may include assets held in the general account of an insurance company that are deemed “plan
assets” under ERISA or assets of certain investment vehicles in which the Plan invests. Each of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. and certain of its affiliates may be considered a “party in interest” or a “disqualified person” with respect to many
Plans, and, accordingly, prohibited transactions may arise if the notes are acquired by or on behalf of a Plan unless those notes are acquired and held pursuant to an available exemption. In general, available exemptions are: transactions
effected on behalf of that Plan by a “qualified professional asset manager” (prohibited transaction exemption 84-14) or an “in-house asset manager” (prohibited transaction exemption 96-23), transactions involving insurance company general
accounts (prohibited transaction exemption 95-60), transactions involving insurance company pooled separate accounts (prohibited transaction exemption 90‑1), transactions involving bank collective investment funds (prohibited transaction
exemption 91-38) and transactions with service providers under Section 408(b)(17) of ERISA and Section 4975(d)(20) of the Code where the Plan receives no less and pays no more than “adequate consideration” (within the meaning of Section
408(b)(17) of ERISA and Section 4975(f)(10) of the Code). The person making the decision on behalf of a Plan or a governmental plan shall be deemed, on behalf of itself and the plan, by purchasing and holding the notes, or exercising any rights
related thereto, to represent that (a) the plan will receive no less and pay no more than “adequate consideration” (within the meaning of Section 408(b)(17) of ERISA and Section 4975(f)(10) of the Code) in connection with the purchase and holding
of the notes, (b) none of the purchase, holding or disposition of the notes or the exercise of any rights related to the notes will result in a nonexempt prohibited transaction under ERISA or the Code (or, with respect to a governmental plan,
under any similar applicable law or regulation), and (c) neither The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. nor any of its affiliates is a “fiduciary” (within the meaning of Section 3(21) of ERISA) or, with respect to a governmental plan, under any similar
applicable law or regulation) with respect to the purchaser or holder in connection with such person’s acquisition, disposition or holding of the notes, or as a result of any exercise by The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. or any of its affiliates of
any rights in connection with the notes, and neither The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. nor any of its affiliates has provided investment advice in connection with such person’s acquisition, disposition or holding of the notes.
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If you are an insurance company or the fiduciary of a pension plan or an employee benefit plan
(including a governmental plan, an IRA or a Keogh plan), and propose to invest in the notes, you should consult your legal counsel.
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GS Finance Corp. has agreed to sell to GS&Co., and GS&Co. has agreed to purchase from GS Finance Corp., the aggregate
face amount of the offered notes specified on the front cover of this prospectus supplement. GS&Co. proposes initially to offer the notes to the public at the original issue prices set forth on the cover page of this prospectus supplement,
and to certain securities dealers at such prices less a concession not in excess of 2.25% of the face amount.
In the future, GS&Co. or other affiliates of GS Finance Corp. may repurchase and resell the offered notes in market-making
transactions, with resales being made at prices related to prevailing market prices at the time of resale or at negotiated prices. GS Finance Corp. estimates that its share of the total offering expenses, excluding underwriting discounts and
commissions, will be approximately $20,000. For more information about the plan of distribution and possible market-making activities, see “Plan of Distribution” in the accompanying prospectus.
We will deliver the notes against payment therefor in New York, New York on January 31, 2019. Under Rule 15c6-1 of the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934, trades in the secondary market generally are required to settle in two business days, unless the parties to any such trade expressly agree otherwise. Accordingly, purchasers who wish to trade notes on any date prior to two
business days before delivery will be required to specify alternative settlement arrangements to prevent a failed settlement.
We have been advised by GS&Co. that it intends to make a market in the notes. However, neither GS&Co. nor any of our
other affiliates that makes a market is obligated to do so and any of them may stop doing so at any time without notice. No assurance can be given as to the liquidity or trading market for the notes.
Any notes which are the subject of the offering contemplated by this prospectus supplement, the
accompanying prospectus and the accompanying prospectus supplement may not be offered, sold or otherwise made available to any retail investor in the European Economic Area. Consequently no key information document required by Regulation (EU) No
1286/2014 (the “PRIIPs Regulation”) for offering or selling the notes or otherwise making them available to retail investors in the EEA has been prepared and therefore offering or selling the notes or otherwise making them available to any retail
investor in the EEA may be unlawful under the PRIIPs Regulation. For the purposes of this provision:
a) the expression “retail investor” means a person who is one (or more) of the following:
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a retail client as defined in point (11) of Article 4(1) of Directive 2014/65/EU (as amended, “MiFID II”); or
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a customer within the meaning of Directive 2002/92/EC (as amended, the “Insurance Mediation Directive”), where that customer would not qualify as a professional client as defined in
point (10) of Article 4(1) of MiFID II; or
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not a qualified investor as defined in Directive 2003/71/EC (as amended, the “Prospectus Directive”); and
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b) the expression an “offer” includes the communication in any form and by any means of sufficient information on the terms of the offer and the notes to be offered so as to enable an investor to decide
to purchase or subscribe for the notes.
In relation to each Member State of the European Economic Area which has implemented the Prospectus Directive (each, a “Relevant Member State”),
GS&Co. has represented and agreed that with effect from and including the date on which the Prospectus Directive is implemented in that Relevant Member State (the “Relevant Implementation Date”) it has not made and will not make an offer of
notes which are the subject of the offering contemplated by this prospectus supplement, the accompanying prospectus and the accompanying prospectus supplement to the public in that Relevant Member State except that, with effect from and including
the Relevant Implementation Date, an offer of such notes may be made to the public in that Relevant Member State:
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at any time to any legal entity which is a qualified investor as defined in the Prospectus Directive;
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| b) |
at any time to fewer than 150 natural or legal persons (other than qualified investors as defined in the Prospectus Directive), subject to obtaining the prior consent of the relevant
dealer or dealers nominated by the issuer for any such offer; or
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at any time in any other circumstances falling within Article 3(2) of the Prospectus Directive,
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provided that no such offer of notes referred to above shall require us or any dealer to publish a prospectus pursuant to Article
3 of the Prospectus Directive.
For the purposes of this provision, the expression an “offer of notes to the public” in relation to any notes in any Relevant
Member State means the communication in any form and by any means of sufficient information on the terms of the offer and the notes to be offered so as to enable an investor to decide to purchase or subscribe for the notes, as the same may be
varied in that Member State by any measure implementing the Prospectus Directive in that Member State and the expression “Prospectus Directive” means Directive 2003/71/EC (as amended, including by Directive 2010/73/EU), and includes any relevant
implementing measure in the Relevant Member State.
Any invitation or inducement to engage in investment activity (within the meaning of Section 21 of the FSMA) in connection with
the issue or sale of the notes may only be communicated or caused to be communicated in circumstances in which Section 21(1) of the FSMA does not apply to GS Finance Corp. or The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc.
All applicable provisions of the FSMA must be complied with in respect to anything done by any person in relation to the notes
in, from or otherwise involving the United Kingdom.
The notes may not be offered or sold in Hong Kong by means of any document other than (i) to “professional investors” as defined
in the Securities and Futures Ordinance (Cap. 571 of the Laws of Hong Kong) and any rules made thereunder, or (ii) in other circumstances which do not result in the document being a “prospectus” as defined in the Companies (Winding Up and
Miscellaneous Provisions) Ordinance (Cap. 32 of the Laws of Hong Kong) or which do not constitute an offer to the public within the meaning of that Ordinance; and no advertisement, invitation or document relating to the notes may be issued or may
be in the possession of any person for the purpose of issue (in each case whether in Hong Kong or elsewhere) which is directed at, or the contents of which are likely to be accessed or read by, the public in Hong Kong (except if permitted to do
so under the securities laws of Hong Kong) other than with respect to the notes which are or are intended to be disposed of only to persons outside Hong Kong or only to “professional investors” as defined in the Securities and Futures Ordinance
and any rules made thereunder.
This prospectus supplement, along with the accompanying prospectus
supplement and the accompanying prospectus have not been registered as a prospectus with the Monetary Authority of Singapore. Accordingly, this prospectus supplement, along with the accompanying prospectus supplement and the accompanying
prospectus and any other document or material in connection with the offer or sale, or invitation for subscription or purchase, of the notes may not be circulated or distributed, nor may the notes be offered or sold, or be made the subject of an
invitation for subscription or purchase, whether directly or indirectly, to persons in Singapore other than (i) to an institutional investor (as defined in Section 4A of the Securities and Futures Act, Chapter 289 of Singapore (the “SFA”)) under
Section 274 of the SFA, (ii) to a relevant person (as defined in Section 275(2) of the SFA) pursuant to Section 275(1) of the SFA, or any person pursuant to Section 275(1A) of the SFA, and in accordance with the conditions specified in Section
275 of the SFA or (iii) otherwise pursuant to, and in accordance with the conditions of, any other applicable provision of the SFA, in each case subject to conditions set forth in the SFA.
Where the notes are subscribed or purchased under Section 275 of the SFA by a relevant person which is a corporation (which is not an accredited
investor (as defined in Section 4A of the SFA)) the sole business of which is to hold investments and the entire share capital of which is owned by one or more individuals, each of whom is an accredited investor, the securities (as defined in
Section 239(1) of the SFA) of that corporation shall not be transferable for six months after that corporation has acquired the notes under Section 275 of the SFA except: (1) to an institutional investor under Section 274 of the SFA
or to a relevant person (as defined in Section 275(2) of the SFA), (2) where such transfer arises from an offer in that corporation’s securities
pursuant to Section 275(1A) of the SFA, (3) where no consideration is or will be given for the transfer, (4) where the transfer is by operation of law, (5) as specified in Section 276(7) of the SFA, or (6) as specified in Regulation 32 of the
Securities and Futures (Offers of Investments) (Shares and Debentures) Regulations 2005 of Singapore (“Regulation 32”).
Where the notes are subscribed or purchased under Section 275 of the SFA by a relevant person which is a trust (where the trustee
is not an accredited investor (as defined in Section 4A of the SFA)) whose sole purpose is to hold investments and each beneficiary of the trust is an accredited investor, the beneficiaries’ rights and interest (howsoever described) in that trust
shall not be transferable for six months after that trust has acquired the notes under Section 275 of the SFA except: (1) to an institutional investor under Section 274 of the SFA or to a relevant person (as defined in Section 275(2) of the SFA),
(2) where such transfer arises from an offer that is made on terms that such rights or interest are acquired at a consideration of not less than S$200,000 (or its equivalent in a foreign currency) for each transaction (whether such amount is to
be paid for in cash or by exchange of securities or other assets), (3) where no consideration is or will be given for the transfer, (4) where the transfer is by operation of law, (5) as specified in Section 276(7) of the SFA, or (6) as specified
in Regulation 32.
The notes have not been and will not be registered under the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act of Japan (Act No. 25 of 1948,
as amended), or the FIEA. The notes may not be offered or sold, directly or indirectly, in Japan or to or for the benefit of any resident of Japan (including any person resident in Japan or any corporation or other entity organized under the laws
of Japan) or to others for reoffering or resale, directly or indirectly, in Japan or to or for the benefit of any resident of Japan, except pursuant to an exemption from the registration requirements of the FIEA and otherwise in compliance with
any relevant laws and regulations of Japan.
The notes are not offered, sold or advertised, directly or indirectly, in, into or from Switzerland on the basis of a public
offering and will not be listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange or any other offering or regulated trading facility in Switzerland. Accordingly, neither this prospectus supplement nor any accompanying prospectus supplement, prospectus or other
marketing material constitute a prospectus as defined in article 652a or article 1156 of the Swiss Code of Obligations or a listing prospectus as defined in article 32 of the Listing Rules of the SIX Swiss Exchange or any other regulated trading
facility in Switzerland. Any resales of the notes by the underwriters thereof may only be undertaken on a private basis to selected individual investors in compliance with Swiss law. This prospectus supplement and accompanying prospectus and
prospectus supplement may not be copied, reproduced, distributed or passed on to others or otherwise made available in Switzerland without our prior written consent. By accepting this prospectus supplement and accompanying prospectus and
prospectus supplement or by subscribing to the notes, investors are deemed to have acknowledged and agreed to abide by these restrictions. Investors are advised to consult with their financial, legal or tax advisers before investing in the notes.
GS&Co. is an affiliate of GS Finance Corp. and The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. and, as such, will have a “conflict of interest” in this offering of
notes within the meaning of Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (FINRA) Rule 5121. Consequently, this offering of notes will be conducted in compliance with the provisions of FINRA Rule 5121. GS&Co. will not be permitted to sell
notes in this offering to an account over which it exercises discretionary authority without the prior specific written approval of the account holder.
In the opinion of Sidley Austin llp, as counsel to GS Finance Corp. and The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc.,
when the notes offered by this prospectus supplement have been executed and issued by GS Finance Corp., the related guarantee offered by this prospectus supplement has been executed and issued by The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., and such notes
have been authenticated by the trustee pursuant to the indenture, and such notes and the guarantee have been delivered against payment as contemplated herein, (a) such notes will be valid and binding obligations of GS Finance Corp., enforceable
in accordance with their terms, subject to applicable bankruptcy, insolvency and similar laws affecting creditors’ rights generally, concepts of reasonableness and equitable principles of general applicability (including, without limitation,
concepts of good faith, fair dealing and the lack of bad faith), provided that such counsel expresses no opinion as to the effect of fraudulent conveyance, fraudulent transfer or similar provision of applicable law on the conclusions expressed
above and (b) such related guarantee will be a valid and binding obligation of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., enforceable in accordance with its terms, subject to applicable bankruptcy, insolvency and similar laws affecting creditors’ rights
generally, concepts of reasonableness and equitable principles of general applicability (including, without limitation, concepts of good faith, fair dealing and the lack of bad faith), provided that such counsel expresses no opinion as to the
effect of fraudulent conveyance, fraudulent transfer or similar provision of applicable law on the conclusions expressed above. This opinion is given as of the date hereof and is limited to the laws of the State of New York and the General
Corporation Law of the State of Delaware as in effect on the date hereof. In addition, this opinion is subject to customary assumptions about the trustee’s authorization, execution and delivery of the indenture and the genuineness of signatures
and certain factual matters, all as stated in the letter of such counsel dated July 10, 2017, which has been filed as Exhibit 5.6 to the registration statement on Form S-3 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission by GS Finance Corp.
and The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. on July 10, 2017.
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We have not authorized anyone to provide any information or to make any representations other than those contained or incorporated by reference
in this prospectus supplement, the accompanying prospectus supplement or the accompanying prospectus. We take no responsibility for, and can provide no assurance as to the reliability of, any other information that others may give you. This
prospectus supplement, the accompanying prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus is an offer to sell only the notes offered hereby, but only under circumstances and in jurisdictions where it is lawful to do so. The information
contained in this prospectus supplement, the accompanying prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus is current only as of the respective dates of such documents.
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S-3
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S-6
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S-10
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S-20
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S-28
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S-28
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S-29
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S-46
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S-50
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S-51
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S-53
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S-54
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Prospectus Supplement dated July 10, 2017
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Use of Proceeds
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S-2
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Description of Notes We May Offer
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S-3
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Considerations Relating to Indexed Notes
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S-15
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United States Taxation
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S-18
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Employee Retirement Income Security Act
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S-19
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Supplemental Plan of Distribution
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S-20
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Validity of the Notes and Guarantees
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S-21
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Prospectus dated July 10, 2017
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Available Information
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2
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Prospectus Summary
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4
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Risks Relating to Regulatory Resolution Strategies and Long-Term Debt Requirements
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8
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Use of Proceeds
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11
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Description of Debt Securities We May Offer
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12
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Description of Warrants We May Offer
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45
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Description of Units We May Offer
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60
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GS Finance Corp.
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65
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Legal Ownership and Book-Entry Issuance
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67
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Considerations Relating to Floating Rate Debt Securities
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72
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Considerations Relating to Indexed Securities
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73
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Considerations Relating to Securities Denominated or Payable in or Linked to a Non-U.S. Dollar Currency
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74
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United States Taxation
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77
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Plan of Distribution
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92
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Conflicts of Interest
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94
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Employee Retirement Income Security Act
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95
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Validity of the Securities and Guarantees
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95
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Experts
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96
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Review of Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements by Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm
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96
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Cautionary Statement Pursuant to the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995
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96
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$6,277,000
GS Finance Corp.
GS Finance Corp.
Autocallable Index-Linked Notes due 2022
guaranteed by
The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc.
Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC
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