Form 424B2 GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP INC

Filed Pursuant to Rule 424(b)(2)

Registration Statement No. 333-239610

 

 

The notes do not bear interest. The amount that you will be paid on your notes on the stated maturity date (May 30, 2023) is based on the performance of the iShares^® Silver Trust (ETF) as measured from the trade date (November 24, 2020) to and including the determination date (May 24, 2023).

If the final level on the determination date is greater than the initial ETF level of $21.63, the return on your notes will be positive and will equal 2 times the ETF return (the percentage increase or decrease in the final ETF level of the ETF from its initial ETF level), subject to the maximum settlement amount.

If the final level is equal to or less than the initial ETF level but greater than or equal to 85% of the initial level, you will receive the face amount of your notes.

If the final level is less than 85% of the initial level, the return on your notes will be negative and will equal the ETF return plus 15%. You could lose a significant portion of the face amount of your notes.

At maturity, for each $1,000 face amount of your notes, you will receive an amount in cash equal to:

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 PS-10.

The approximate estimated value of your notes at the time the terms of your notes are set on the trade date is equal to the dollar amount set forth above. 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.

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

Pricing Supplement No. 621 dated November 24, 2020.

 

 

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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 pricing 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.

 

 

 

PS-2

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TERMS AND CONDITIONS

(Terms From Pricing Supplement No. 621 Incorporated Into Master Note No. 2)

 

CUSIP / ISIN: 40057EHY6 / US40057EHY68

Company (Issuer): GS Finance Corp.

Guarantor: The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc.

Underlier: the iShares^® Silver Trust (current Bloomberg symbol: “SLV UP Equity”), or any successor underlier, as it may be modified, replaced or adjusted from time to time as provided herein

Face amount: $502,000 in the aggregate on the original issue date; the aggregate face amount may be increased if the company, at its sole option, decides to sell an additional amount on a date subsequent to the trade date.

Authorized denominations: $1,000 or any integral multiple of $1,000 in excess thereof

Principal amount: On the stated maturity date, the company will pay, for each $1,000 of the outstanding face amount, an amount, if any, in cash equal to the cash settlement amount.

Cash settlement amount:

Initial underlier level: $21.63

Final underlier level: the closing level of the underlier on the determination date, subject to adjustment as provided in “— Consequences of a market disruption event or non-trading day” and “— Discontinuance or modification of the underlier” below

Cap level: 118.5% of the initial underlier level

Maximum settlement amount: $1,370

Upside participation rate: 200%

Underlier return: the quotient of (i) the final underlier level minus the initial underlier level divided by (ii) the initial underlier level, expressed as a percentage

Buffer level: 85% of the initial underlier level

Buffer rate: 100%

Buffer amount: 15%

Trade date: November 24, 2020

Original issue date: November 30, 2020

Determination date: May 24, 2023, unless the calculation agent determines that a market disruption event occurs or is continuing on such day or such day is not a trading day. In that event, the determination date will be the first following trading day on which the calculation agent determines that a market disruption event does not occur and

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is not continuing. However, the determination date will not be postponed to a date later than the originally scheduled stated maturity 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. If a market disruption event occurs or is continuing on the day that is the last possible determination date or such last possible day is not a trading day, that day will nevertheless be the determination date.

Stated maturity date: May 30, 2023, unless that day is not a business day, in which case the stated maturity date will be postponed to the next following business day. The stated maturity date will also be postponed if the determination date is postponed as described under “— Determination date” above. In such a case, the stated maturity date will 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.

Closing level: for any given trading day, the closing sale price or last reported sale price, regular way, for the underlier, on a per-share or other unit basis:

The closing level is subject to adjustment as described under “— Anti-dilution adjustments” below.

Trading day: a day on which (i) the exchange on which the underlier has its primary listing is open for trading and (ii) the price of one share of the underlier is quoted by the exchange on which such underlier has its primary listing

Successor underlier: any substitute underlier approved by the calculation agent as a successor underlier as provided under “— Discontinuance or modification of the underlier” below

Underlier investment advisor: at any time, the person or entity, including any successor investment advisor, that serves as an investment advisor to the underlier as then in effect

Market disruption event: With respect to any given trading day, any of the following will be a market disruption event with respect to the underlier:

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 the company or any of its affiliates or a similarly situated person to unwind all or a material portion of a hedge that could be effected with respect to this note.

The following events will not be market disruption events:

For this purpose, an “absence of trading” in the primary securities market on which shares of the underlier are traded, or on which option or futures contracts, if available, relating to the underlier 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 shares of the underlier or in option or futures contracts, if available, relating to the underlier in the primary market for the underlier or those contracts, by reason of:

PS-4

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will constitute a suspension or material limitation of trading in shares of the underlier or those contracts in that market.

Consequences of a market disruption event or a non-trading day: If a market disruption event occurs or is continuing on a day that would otherwise be the determination date or such day is not a trading day, then the determination date will be postponed as described under “— Determination date” above.

If the calculation agent determines that the closing level of the underlier that must be used to determine the cash settlement amount is not available on the last possible determination date because of a market disruption event, a non-trading day or for any other reason (other than as described under “— Discontinuance or modification of the underlier” below), the calculation agent will nevertheless determine the closing level of the underlier based on its assessment, made in its sole discretion, of the level of the underlier on that day.

Discontinuance or modification of the underlier: If the underlier is delisted from the exchange on which the underlier has its primary listing and the underlier investment advisor or anyone else publishes a substitute underlier that the calculation agent determines is comparable to the underlier and approves as a successor underlier, or if the calculation agent designates a substitute underlier, then the calculation agent will determine the amount payable on the stated maturity date by reference to such successor underlier.

If the calculation agent determines that the underlier is delisted or withdrawn from the exchange on which the underlier has its primary listing and there is no successor underlier, the calculation agent will determine the amount payable on the stated maturity date by a computation methodology that the calculation agent determines will as closely as reasonably possible replicate the underlier.

If the calculation agent determines that the underlier or the method of calculating the underlier is changed at any time in any respect — including any split or reverse split of the underlier, a material change in the investment objective of the underlier and any addition, deletion or substitution and any reweighting or rebalancing of the underlier and whether the change is made by the underlier investment advisor under its existing policies or following a modification of those policies, is due to the publication of a successor underlier or is due to any other reason — then the calculation agent will be permitted (but not required) to make such adjustments in the underlier or the method of its calculation as it believes are appropriate to ensure that the final underlier level, used to determine the amount payable on the stated maturity date, is equitable.

All determinations and adjustments to be made by the calculation agent with respect to the underlier may be made by the calculation agent in its sole discretion. The calculation agent is not obligated to make any such adjustments.

Anti-dilution adjustments: The calculation agent will have discretion to adjust the closing level of the underlier if certain events occur (including those described above under “— Discontinuance or modification of the underlier”). In the event that any event other than a delisting or withdrawal from the relevant exchange occurs, the calculation agent shall determine whether and to what extent an adjustment should be made to the level of the underlier or any other term. The calculation agent shall have no obligation to make an adjustment for any such event.

Calculation agent: Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC (“GS&Co.”)

Tax characterization: The holder, on behalf of itself and any other person having a beneficial interest in this note, hereby agrees with the company (in the absence of a change in law, an administrative determination or a judicial ruling to the contrary) to characterize this note for all U.S. federal income tax purposes as a pre-paid derivative contract in respect of the underlier.

Overdue principal rate: the effective Federal Funds rate

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LIMITED EVENTS OF DEFAULT

 

The only events of default for the notes are (i) payment defaults that continue for a 30 day-grace period and (ii) certain insolvency events. No other breach or default under our senior debt indenture or the notes will result in an event of default for the notes or permit the trustee or holders to accelerate the maturity of the notes - that is, they will not be entitled to declare the face or principal amount of any notes to be immediately due and payable. See “Risks Relating to Regulatory Resolution Strategies and Long-Term Debt Requirements” and “Description of Debt Securities We May Offer — Default, Remedies and Waiver of Default — Securities Issued Under the 2008 GSFC Indenture” in the accompanying prospectus for further details.

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HYPOTHETICAL EXAMPLES

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 merely are intended to illustrate the impact that the various hypothetical underlier levels on the determination date could have on the cash settlement amount at maturity assuming all other variables remain constant.

The examples below are based on a range of final underlier levels that are entirely hypothetical; the underlier level on any day throughout the life of the notes, including the final underlier level on the determination date, cannot be predicted. The underlier has been highly volatile in the past — meaning that such underlier level has changed considerably in relatively short periods — and its performance cannot be predicted for any future period.

The information in the following examples assumes that (i) neither a market disruption event nor a non-trading day occurs on the originally scheduled determination date, (ii) there is no change in or affecting any of the underlier or the policies of the underlier’ s investment advisor, (iii) the notes are purchased on the original issue date at the face amount and held to the stated maturity date. If you sell your notes in a secondary market prior to the stated maturity date, 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 underlier, 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 PS-10 of this pricing supplement.

For these reasons, the actual performance of the underlier over the life of your notes, as well as the amount payable at maturity, may bear little relation to the hypothetical examples shown below or to the historical underlier levels shown elsewhere in this pricing supplement. Before investing in any offered notes, you should consult publicly available information to determine the levels of the underlier between the date of this pricing supplement and the date of your purchase of the offered 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 underlier.

The cash settlement amounts shown below are entirely hypothetical; they are based on market prices for the underlier 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 below, and these amounts should not be viewed as an indication of the financial return on an investment in any offered notes. The hypothetical cash settlement amounts on notes held to the stated maturity date in the examples below 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 below 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 PS-28.

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 pricing supplement.

PS-7

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The following examples reflect an upside participation rate of 200%, a cap level of 118.5% of the initial underlier level, a maximum settlement amount of $1,370,a buffer level of 85% of the initial underlier level, a buffer rate of 100% and a buffer amount of 15%. You should carefully review these examples.  In reviewing these examples, you should also review the assumptions on page PS-7.

The levels in the left column of the table below represent hypothetical final underlier levels of the SLV underlier and are expressed as percentages of its initial underlier level. The amounts in the right column represent the hypothetical cash settlement amounts, based on the corresponding hypothetical final underlier level of the SLV underlier, 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 underlier level of the SLV underlier and the assumptions noted above.

If, for example, the final underlier level of the SLV underlier were determined to be 25.000% of its initial underlier level, the cash settlement amount that we would deliver on your notes at maturity would be 40.000% 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 60.000% 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 underlier level of the SLV underlier were determined to be 200.000% of its initial underlier level, the cash settlement amount that we would deliver on your notes at maturity would be capped at the maximum settlement amount, or 137.000% 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, you would not benefit from any increase in the final underlier level of the SLV underlier over 118.500% of its initial underlier level.  

The following chart shows a graphical illustration of the hypothetical cash settlement amounts that we would pay on your notes on the stated maturity date, if the final underlier level of the SLV underlier were any of the hypothetical levels shown on the horizontal axis. The hypothetical cash settlement amounts in the chart are expressed as percentages of the face amount of your notes and the hypothetical final underlier levels of the SLV underlier are expressed as percentages of its initial underlier level. The chart shows that any hypothetical final underlier level of the SLV underlier of less than 85.000% (the section left of the 85.000% marker on the horizontal axis) would result in a hypothetical cash settlement amount of less than 100.000% of the face amount of your notes (the section below the 100.000% marker on the vertical axis) and, accordingly, in a loss of principal to the holder of the notes. The chart also shows that any hypothetical final underlier level of the SLV underlier of greater than or equal to 118.500% (the section right of the 118.500% marker on the horizontal axis) would result in a capped return on your investment.

PS-8

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PS-9

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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  

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.

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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 “Additional Risk Factors Specific to the Underlier-Linked Notes — Your Notes May Not Have an Active Trading Market” on page S-10 of the accompanying general terms supplement no. 8,671.

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 the underlier, 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 F Program — How the Notes Rank Against Other Debt” on page S-5 of the accompanying prospectus supplement and “Description of Debt Securities We May Offer — Guarantee by The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc.” on page 68 of the accompanying prospectus.

The Amount Payable on Your Notes Is Not Linked to the Level of the Underlier at Any Time Other Than the Determination Date

The final underlier level of the underlier will be based on the closing level of the underlier on the determination date (subject to adjustment as described elsewhere in this pricing supplement). Therefore, if the closing level of the underlier dropped precipitously on the determination date, the cash settlement amount for your notes may be significantly less than it would have been had the cash settlement amount been linked to the closing level of the underlier prior to such drop in the level of the underlier. Although the actual level of the underlier on the stated maturity date or at other times during the life of your notes may be higher than the final underlier level of the underlier, you will not benefit from the closing level of the underlier at any time other than on the determination date.

You May Lose a Substantial Portion of Your Investment in the Notes

You can lose a substantial portion of your investment in the notes. The cash payment on your notes on the stated maturity date will be based on the performance of the underlier as measured from the initial underlier level of the underlier to its closing level on the determination date. If the final underlier level of the underlier is less than its buffer level, you will have a loss for each $1,000 of the face amount of your notes equal to the product of (i) the sum of the underlier return plus the buffer amount times (ii) $1,000. Thus, you may lose a substantial portion of your 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 the stated maturity date 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.

Your Notes Do 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 the stated maturity date 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 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:

These factors may influence the market value of your notes 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 prior to maturity, you may

PS-11

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receive less than the face amount of your notes. You cannot predict the future performance of the underlier based on its historical performance.

The Potential for the Value of Your Notes to Increase Will Be Limited

Your ability to participate in any change in the value of the underlier over the life of your notes will be limited because of the maximum settlement amount. The maximum settlement amount will limit the cash settlement amount you may receive for each of your notes at maturity, no matter how much the level of the underlier may rise beyond the cap level over the life of your notes. Accordingly, the amount payable for each of your notes may be significantly less than it would have been had you invested directly in the underlier.

 

You Have No Shareholder Rights or Rights to Receive Any Shares of the Underlier

Investing in your notes will not make you a holder of any shares of the underlier. Neither you nor any other holder or owner of your notes will have any rights with respect to the underlier, including any voting rights, any right to receive dividends or other distributions, any rights to make a claim against the underlier or any other rights of a holder of the underlier. Your notes will be paid in cash and you will have no right to receive delivery of any shares of the underlier.

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 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 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 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. In addition, the impact of the buffer level and the cap level on the return on your investment will depend upon the price you pay for your notes relative to face amount. For example, if you purchase your notes at a premium to face amount, the cap level will only permit a lower positive return on your investment in the notes than would have been the case for notes purchased at face amount or a discount to face amount. Similarly, the buffer level, while still providing some protection for the return on the notes, will allow a greater percentage decrease in your investment in the notes than would have been the case for notes purchased at face amount or a discount to face amount.

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 pricing 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 pricing supplement.

Legal and Regulatory Changes Could Adversely Affect the Return on and Value of Your Notes

The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank), which effected substantial changes to the regulation of the futures and over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives markets, was enacted in July 2010. Dodd-Frank requires regulators, including the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), to adopt regulations to implement many of the requirements of the legislation. While the CFTC has adopted many of the required regulations, a number of them have only recently become effective, and certain requirements remain to be finalized. The ultimate impact of the regulatory scheme, therefore, cannot yet be fully determined. Under Dodd-Frank, in October 2020 the CFTC adopted a rule to impose limits on the size of positions that can be held by market participants in futures and OTC derivatives on physical commodities. Required compliance with the new position limits rule begins on January 1, 2022 for physical commodity futures (and any associated referenced contracts other than economically equivalent swaps) and on January 1, 2023 for economically equivalent swaps. Related to the position limits rule, the CFTC has recently adopted final rules governing the aggregation of positions by market participants under common control and by trading managers. While the ultimate scope and impact of the proposed position limits rule, final aggregation rules and other CFTC rules cannot be conclusively determined at present, these new requirements could restrict the ability of certain market participants to participate in the commodities, futures and swap markets and markets for other OTC derivatives on physical commodities to the extent and at the levels that they have in the past. These factors may also have the effect of reducing liquidity and increasing costs in these markets as well as affecting the structure of the markets in other ways.

In addition, these legislative and regulatory changes have increased, and will continue to increase, the level of regulation of markets and market participants, and therefore the costs of participating in the commodities, futures

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and OTC derivatives markets. Without limitation, these changes require many OTC derivatives transactions to be executed on regulated exchanges or trading platforms and cleared through regulated clearing houses. Swap dealers (as defined by the CFTC) are also required to be registered and are subject to various regulatory requirements, including, but not limited to, posting and collecting margin for un-cleared OTC swaps traded bilaterally with financial entities, recordkeeping, reporting and various business conduct requirements, as well as proposed minimum financial capital requirements. These legislative and regulatory changes, and the resulting increased costs and regulatory oversight requirements, could result in market participants being required to, or deciding to, limit their trading activities, which could cause reductions in market liquidity and increases in market volatility. In addition, transaction costs incurred by market participants are likely to be higher than in the past, reflecting the costs of compliance with the new regulations. These consequences could adversely affect the price of the underliers, which could in turn adversely affect the return on and value of your notes.

In addition, other regulatory bodies have passed or proposed, or may propose in the future, legislation similar to that proposed by Dodd-Frank or other legislation containing other restrictions that could adversely impact the liquidity of and increase costs of participating in the commodities markets. For example, the European Union (“EU”) Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (Directive 2014/65/EU) and Markets in Financial Instruments Regulation (Regulation (EU) No 600/2014) (together “MiFID II”), which has applied since January 3, 2018, governs the provision of investment services and activities in relation to, as well as the organized trading of, financial instruments such as shares, bonds, units in collective investment schemes and derivatives. In particular, MiFID II requires EU Member States to apply position limits to the size of a net position which a person can hold at any time in commodity derivatives traded on EU trading venues and in “economically equivalent” OTC contracts. By way of further example, the European Market Infrastructure Regulation (Regulation (EU) No 648/2012) (“EMIR”) introduced certain requirements in respect of OTC derivatives including: (i) the mandatory clearing of OTC derivative contracts declared subject to the clearing obligation; (ii) risk mitigation techniques in respect of uncleared OTC derivative contracts, including the mandatory margining of uncleared OTC derivative contracts; and (iii) reporting and recordkeeping requirements in respect of all derivative contracts. In the event that the requirements under EMIR and MiFID II apply, these are expected to increase the cost of transacting derivatives.

Ongoing Commodities-Related Regulatory Investigations And Private Litigation Could Affect Prices for Commodities, Which Could Adversely Affect Your Notes

An increased focus on price setting and trading prices by regulators and exchanges recently have resulted in a number of changes to the ways in which prices are determined, including prices for commodities. This increased focus also resulted in the publication of standards for benchmark setting by the International Organization of Securities Commissions. Investigations by regulatory authorities, enforcement actions and criminal proceedings in the United States and around the world, and private litigation regarding potential direct and indirect manipulation of the trading prices of certain commodities, are ongoing against a number of firms.

These ongoing investigations, actions, proceedings and litigations may result in further review by exchanges and regulators of the methods by which commodities prices are determined and the manner in which commodities are traded and changes to those methods. In addition, changes to other commodity-related activities, such as storage facilities and delivery methods, may also occur. If any of these changes occur, the price of the commodity to which your notes may be linked may be affected, which may thereby adversely affect the price of the underlier and your notes.

In addition, if alleged trading price manipulation or other alleged conduct that may have artificially affected prices has occurred or is continuing, certain published commodity prices (including historical prices) may have been, or may be in the future, artificially lower (or higher) than they would otherwise have been. In particular, the historical trading information of the commodity to which your notes may be linked may be incorrect and, as a result, may not be representative of the prices or changes in prices or the volatility of the commodity to which your notes may be linked. In the future, any such artificially lower (or higher) prices could have an adverse impact on the relevant commodities or commodity contracts and any payments on, and the value of, your notes and the trading market for your notes.

The Policies of the Trustee of the Underlier, The Bank of New York Mellon, Could Affect the Amount Payable on Your Notes and Their Market Value

The trustee of the underlier, The Bank of New York Mellon (the “trustee”), may be called upon to make certain policy decisions or judgments concerning the valuation of the assets held by the underlier, the calculation of the net asset value and net asset value per share, and additions, deletions or substitutions of assets in underlier. Such determinations could affect the market price of the shares of the underlier, and therefore, the amount payable on your notes on the stated maturity date. The amount payable on your notes and their market value could also be affected if the trustee changes these policies, for example, by changing or discontinuing the manner in which it

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evaluates the assets held by the underlier and the manner in which it calculates the net asset value of the underlier, in which case it may become difficult or inappropriate to determine the market value of your notes.

If events such as these occur, the calculation agent — which initially will be GS&Co. — may determine the closing level of the underlier on the determination date — and thus the amount payable on the stated maturity date, if any — in a manner, in its sole discretion, it considers appropriate. We describe the discretion that the calculation agent will have in determining the closing level of the underlier on the determination date, as applicable, and the amount payable on your notes more fully under “Terms and Conditions — Discontinuance or modification of an underlier” on page PS-9 of this pricing supplement.

There is No Assurance That an Active Trading Market Will Continue for the Underlier or That There Will Be Liquidity in Any Such Trading Market; Further, the Underlier is Subject to Securities Lending Risks and Custody Risks

Although the shares of the underlier are listed for trading on NYSE Arca, Inc. (the “NYSE Arca”) and a number of similar products have been traded on the NYSE Arca or other securities exchanges for varying periods of time, there is no assurance that an active trading market will continue for the shares of the underlier or that there will be liquidity in the trading market.

The purpose of the underlier is to own silver transferred to the underlier in exchange for shares issued by the underlier. The underlier is not actively managed and may be affected by a decline in the price of silver.

In addition, the underlier is subject to custody risk, which refers to the risks in safekeeping the underlier’s silver bullion and facilitating the transfer of silver bullion into and out of the underlier.

The Underlier is a Concentrated Investment in a Single Commodity and Does Not Provide Diversified Exposure

The price of shares of the underlier is linked to the price of silver and not to a diverse basket of commodities or a broad-based commodity index. The price of silver may not correlate to the price of commodities generally and may diverge significantly from the prices of commodities generally. Because the notes are linked, in part, to the underlier that is itself linked to the price of a single commodity, the notes may carry greater risk and may be more volatile than a security linked to the prices of multiple commodities or a broad-based commodity index.

The Price of the Underlier is Linked to the Price of Silver, Which May Change Unpredictably and Affect the Value of the Notes in Unforeseeable Ways

The underlier attempts to mirror, as closely as possible, before fees and expenses, the performance of the price of silver, and the value of the shares of the underlier is most directly affected by the value of the silver bullion held by the underlier. The silver markets are generally subject to temporary distortions or other disruptions due to various factors, including the lack of liquidity in the markets and government regulation and intervention.

Silver prices are subject to volatile price movements over short periods of time and are generally affected by numerous factors. These include:

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It is not possible to predict the aggregate effect of all or any combination of these factors. Conversely, several factors may trigger a temporary increase in the price of silver prior to the trade date for the notes. If that is the case, the initial underlier level of the underlier will be affected by the temporarily high prices of silver, which will negatively affect your payments on the notes when the causes for the temporary increase disappear.

Investing in Notes Linked to the Underlier is Not the Same as Investing Directly in Silver

The price performance of the underlier may not fully replicate the performance of the price of silver due to the fees and expenses charged by the underlier or by restrictions on access to silver due to other circumstances. The underlier sells silver to pay expenses on an ongoing basis irrespective of whether the trading price of the shares rises or falls in response to changes in the price of silver. The sale of the underlier’s silver to pay expenses at a time of low silver prices could adversely affect the value of the underlier and, therefore, the value of your notes. Additionally, there is a risk that part or all of the underlier’s silver could be lost, damaged or stolen due to war, terrorism, theft, natural disaster or otherwise, which could adversely affect the value of your notes.

An Investment in the Notes is Subject to Risks Associated with the London Bullion Market

The price of one share of the underlier is closely related to the price of silver.

The net asset value of the underlier is obtained by subtracting all accrued fees, expenses and other liabilities of the trust on any day from the total value of the silver and all other assets of the trust on that day.

In addition, the price at which silver is traded on over-the-counter markets around the world has an effect on the value of shares in the trust. Most of such over-the-counter market trading clears through the London bullion market, which is the market in London on which the members of the LBMA quote prices.

Investments in commodities that are traded on non-U.S. markets involve risks associated with the markets in those countries, including risks of volatility and governmental intervention in those markets. The LBMA is a self-regulatory association of bullion market participants. Although the LBMA sets out good practices for participants in the bullion market, the LBMA itself is not a regulated entity. If the LBMA should cease operations, if bullion trading should become subject to a value added tax or other tax or any other form of regulation currently not in place, or if the LBMA should change any rule or bylaw or take emergency action under its rules, the market for silver, and consequently the final underlier level of the underlier, as well as the value of the notes, may be affected. The London bullion market is a principals’ market which operates in a manner more closely analogous to an over-the-counter physical commodity market than a regulated futures market, and certain features of U.S. futures contracts are not present in the context of London bullion market trading. For example, there are no daily price limits on the London bullion market which would otherwise restrict fluctuations in the prices of London bullion market contracts. In a declining market, it is possible that prices would continue to decline without limitation within a trading day or over a period of trading days.

Termination or Liquidation of the Underlier Could Adversely Affect the Value of the Notes

The underlier may be required to terminate and liquidate at a time that is disadvantageous to you, such as when the price of silver is lower than the price of silver at the time when you purchased your notes.

The Correlation Between the Performance of the Underlier and the Price of Silver May Be Imperfect

A discrepancy may exist between the performance of the underlier and the price of silver. Since the shares of the underlier are traded on an exchange and are subject to market supply and investor demand, the market value of one share of the underlier may differ from the net asset value per share of the underlier. As a result of the potential discrepancies identified above, the underlier return may not correlate perfectly with the return on silver over the same period. For more information, see “The Underlier – iShares^® Silver Trust” on page PS-17.

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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 PS-21 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.

Your Notes May Be Subject to the Constructive Ownership Rules

There exists a risk that the constructive ownership rules of Section 1260 of the Internal Revenue Code could apply to your notes. If your notes were subject to the constructive ownership rules, then any long-term capital gain that you realize upon the sale, exchange or maturity of your notes would be re-characterized as ordinary income (and you would be subject to an interest charge on deferred tax liability with respect to such re-characterized capital gain) to the extent that such capital gain exceeds the amount of “net underlying long-term capital gain” (as defined in Section 1260 of the Internal Revenue Code). Because the application of the constructive ownership rules is unclear you are strongly urged to consult your tax advisor with respect to the possible application of the constructive ownership rules to your investment in the notes.

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.

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THE UNDERLIER

The iShares^® Silver Trust (the “trust”) issues shares (the “shares”) representing fractional undivided beneficial interests in its net assets.

We have derived all information regarding the trust and the shares contained in this pricing supplement from publicly available information without independent verification. For additional information regarding the trust, please consult the reports (including the annual report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2019) and other information the trust files with the Securities Exchange Commission (the “SEC”). Information provided to or filed with the SEC can be inspected and copied at the public reference facilities maintained by the SEC or reviewed through the SEC’s website at sec.gov. Additional information regarding the trust may be obtained from other sources including, but not limited to, press releases, newspaper articles, other publicly available documents, and the iShares^® Silver Trust website at ishares.com. We are not incorporating by reference the website, the sources listed above or any material they include in this pricing supplement.

The Trust

The trust was formed on April 21, 2006 when an initial deposit of silver was made in exchange for the issuance of three baskets (a “basket” consists of 50,000 Shares). The trust is a grantor trust formed under the laws of the State of New York.

The trust’s activities are limited to: (i) issuing baskets of shares in exchange for the silver deposited with the custodian as consideration, (ii) selling silver as necessary to cover the sponsor’s fee, trust expenses not assumed by the sponsor and other liabilities and (iii) delivering silver in exchange for baskets of shares surrendered for redemption.

The sponsor of the trust is iShares Delaware Trust Sponsor LLC (the “sponsor”), a Delaware limited liability company and an indirect subsidiary of BlackRock, Inc. (“BlackRock”). The trustee of the trust is The Bank of New York Mellon (the “trustee”) and the custodian of the trust is JPMorgan Chase Bank N.A., London branch (the “custodian”).

The trust does not have any officers, directors or employees and is not actively managed. This means that the trustee does not sell silver during periods when its price is high, or acquire silver at low prices with the expectation of future price increases.

The sponsor does not exercise day-to-day oversight over the trustee or the custodian. The sponsor may remove the trustee and appoint a successor trustee if the trustee ceases to meet certain objective requirements (including the requirement that it have capital, surplus and undivided profits of at least $150 million) or if, having received written notice of a material breach of its obligations under the trust agreement, the trustee has not cured the breach within thirty days or fails to implement certain controls and procedures requested by the sponsor. The sponsor also has the right to replace the trustee during the ninety days following any merger, consolidation or conversion in which the trustee is not the surviving entity or, in its discretion, on the fifth anniversary of the creation of the trust or on any subsequent third anniversary thereafter. The sponsor also has the right to approve any new or additional custodian that the trustee may wish to appoint.

The trustee is responsible for the day-to-day administration of the trust. The responsibilities of the trustee include: (i) processing orders for the creation and redemption of baskets; (ii) coordinating with the custodian the receipt and delivery of silver transferred to, or by, the trust in connection with each issuance and redemption of baskets; (iii) calculating the net asset value of the trust on each business day; and (iv) selling the trust’s silver as needed to cover the trust’s expenses.

Owners of shares do not generally have any voting rights. However, registered holders of at least 25% of the shares have the right to require the trustee to cure any material breach by it of the trust agreement, and registered holders of at least 75% of the shares have the right to require the trustee to terminate the trust agreement. Each share entitles the holder to vote on the limited matters upon which shareholders may vote under the trust agreement. The shares do not entitle their holders to any conversion or pre-emptive rights or any redemption rights.

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The trust is not a registered investment company under the Investment Company Act and is not required to register under such act. The trust is not a commodity pool for purposes of the Commodity Exchange Act, and its sponsor is not subject to regulation by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission as a commodity pool operator or a commodity trading advisor with respect to the trust.

Investment Objective

The purpose of the trust is to own silver transferred to the trust in exchange for shares issued by the trust. The investment objective of the trust is to reflect generally the performance of the price of silver, before expenses and liabilities. The shares are intended to constitute a simple and cost-effective means of making an investment similar to an investment in silver.

The trust will have a limited duration. If certain events occur, at any time, the trustee will have to terminate the trust. Otherwise, the trust will terminate automatically on April 21, 2046. Upon termination of the trust, the trustee will sell silver in the amount necessary to cover all expenses of liquidation, and to pay any outstanding liabilities of the trust. The remaining silver will be distributed among investors surrendering shares. Any silver remaining in the possession of the trustee after 90 days may be sold by the trustee and the proceeds of the sale will be held by the trustee until claimed by any remaining holders of shares. Sales of silver in connection with the liquidation of the trust at a time of low prices will likely result in losses, or adversely affect any gains, on an investment in shares.

Creation and Redemption of the Shares of the Trust

The trust creates and redeems shares on a continuous basis, but only in baskets of 50,000 shares. Only registered broker-dealers who have entered into written agreements with the sponsor and the trustee, can deposit silver and receive baskets of shares in exchange (each, an “authorized participant”). Silver deposited with the custodian must meet the specifications for weight, dimensions, fineness (or purity), identifying marks and appearance of silver bars and as of January 1, 2020, must be produced by refiners that meet certain throughput and tangible net worth requirements as set forth in “Good Delivery List Rules—Conditions for Listing for Good Delivery Refiners” published by the London Bullion Market Association (the “LBMA”).

Authorized participants, acting on authority of the registered holder of shares, may surrender baskets of shares in exchange for a corresponding amount of silver. Upon the surrender of shares and the payment of the trustee’s applicable fee and of any expenses, taxes or charges including stamp taxes, stock transfer taxes or fees, the trustee will deliver to the order of the redeeming authorized participant the amount of silver corresponding to the redeemed baskets. Redemptions may be suspended during any period while regular trading of the shares on NYSE Arca is suspended or restricted or the exchange is closed (other than scheduled holiday or weekend closings), or in which an emergency exists that makes it reasonably impracticable to dispose of, deliver, or evaluate silver. As a condition to redemption, an authorized participant must deliver a written request to the trustee, or submit a redemption order through the trustee’s electronic order entry system, specifying the number of baskets it intends to redeem and the location where it intends to take delivery of the silver represented by such baskets.

Termination Events

The trustee will terminate the trust agreement if:

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If not terminated earlier by the trustee, the trust will terminate on April 21, 2046. The trustee will notify DTC at least 30 days before the date for termination of the trust agreement. After termination, the trustee and its agents will do the following under the trust agreement but nothing else: (i) collect distributions pertaining to trust property; (ii) pay the trust’s expenses and sell silver as necessary to meet those expenses; and (iii) deliver trust property upon surrender and cancellation of shares. Ninety days or more after termination, the trustee may sell any remaining trust property by public or private sale. After that, the trustee will hold the money it received on the sale, as well as any other cash it is holding under the trust agreement, for the pro rata benefit of the registered holders that have not surrendered their shares. It will not invest the money and has no liability for interest. The trustee’s only obligations will be to account for the money and other cash, after deduction of applicable fees, trust expenses and taxes and governmental charges.

Valuation of Silver and NAV

The valuation of silver held by the trust is conducted by the trustee. On each business day, as soon as practicable after 4:00 p.m. (New York time), the trustee evaluates silver held by the trust and determines the net asset value of the trust and the net asset value per share (the “NAV”). The net asset value of the trust is obtained by subtracting all accrued fees, expenses and other liabilities of the trust on any day from the total value of the silver and all other assets of the trust on that day; the NAV is obtained by dividing the net asset value of the trust by the number of shares outstanding on the date the computation is made. For purposes of making these calculations, a business day means any day other than a day when NYSE Arca is closed for regular trading. The trustee values the silver held by the trust using that day’s LBMA Silver Price.

Expenses and Fees

The trust’s only ordinary recurring expense is expected to be the sponsor’s fee. In exchange for the sponsor’s fee, the sponsor assumes certain marketing and administrative expenses incurred by the trust including legal fees and expenses not exceeding $100,000 per annum. The sponsor’s fee is accrued daily at an annualized rate equal to 0.50% of the net asset value of the trust and is payable monthly in arrears. Along with the sponsor’s fee, the following expenses are also paid out of the assets of the trust: (i) expenses or liabilities of the trust that are not assumed by the sponsor, (ii) any taxes and other governmental charges that may be imposed on the trust or its property, (iii) expenses and costs related to any action taken by the trustee or the sponsor in connection with protecting the rights and interests of the trust and its shareholders, and (iv) any indemnification that might be paid to the sponsor pursuant to the trust’s organizational documents.

Understanding the LBMA Silver Price

Although the market for physical silver is global, most over the counter (“OTC”) market trades are cleared through London. In addition to coordinating market activities, the LBMA acts as the coordinator for activities conducted on behalf of its members and other market participants. A primary function of the LBMA is setting OTC silver trading industry standards.

The LBMA Silver Price is the price of an ounce, in U.S. dollars, of unallocated silver delivered in London determined by the ICE Benchmark Administration (the “IBA”) following an electronic auction consisting of one or more 30-second rounds starting at 12:00 p.m. (London time) on each day that the London silver market is open for business and published shortly thereafter. IBA, on behalf of the LBMA, has assumed responsibility for establishing the LBMA Silver Price as of October 2, 2017. At the start of each round of auction, IBA publishes a price for that round. Participants then have 30 seconds to enter, change or cancel their orders (i.e., how much silver they want to buy or sell at that price). At the end of each round, order entry is frozen, and the system checks to see if the imbalance (i.e., the difference between buying and selling) is within the threshold (normally 500,000 ounces for silver).

If the imbalance is outside of the threshold at the end of a round, then the auction is not balanced, the price is adjusted and a new round starts. If the imbalance is within the threshold then the auction is finished, and the price is set as the LBMA Silver Price for that day. Any imbalance is shared equally between all direct participants (even if they did not place orders or did not log in), and the net volume for each participant trades at the final price.

The prices during the auction are determined by an algorithm that takes into account current market conditions and activity in the auction. Each auction is actively supervised by IBA staff. The final price is then published as the LBMA Silver Price in US Dollars. If there is no LBMA Silver Price on any day, the trustee is authorized to use the most recently announced LBMA Silver Price unless the trustee, in consultation with the sponsor, determines that such price is inappropriate as a basis for evaluation.

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Historical Closing Levels of the iShares^® Silver Trust

The closing level of the underlier has fluctuated in the past and may, in the future, experience significant fluctuations. In particular, the underlier has recently experienced extreme and unusual volatility. Any historical upward or downward trend in the closing level of the underlier during the period shown below is not an indication that the underlier is more or less likely to increase or decrease at any time during the life of your notes.

You should not take the historical levels of the underlier as an indication of the future performance of the underlier, including because of the recent volatility described above. We cannot give you any assurance that the future performance of the underlier will result in your receiving an amount greater than 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 underlier. Before investing in the offered notes, you should consult publicly available information to determine the levels of the underlier between the date of this pricing supplement and the date of your purchase of the offered notes and, given the recent volatility described above, you should pay particular attention to recent levels of the underlier. The actual performance of the underlier over the life of the offered notes, as well as the cash settlement amount, may bear little relation to the historical closing levels shown below.

The graph below shows the daily historical closing levels of the underlier from January 1, 2015 through November 24, 2020. As a result, the following graph does not reflect the global financial crisis which began in 2008, which had a materially negative impact on the price of most commodities and, as a result, the level of most commodity ETFs. We obtained the closing levels in the graph below from Bloomberg Financial Services, without independent verification.

Historical Performance of the iShares^® Silver Trust

 

 

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The following section supplements the discussion of U.S. federal income taxation in the accompanying prospectus.

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:

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 discusses 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.

 

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 a note and you are:

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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 underlier. Except as otherwise stated below, the discussion below assumes that the notes will be so treated.

Upon the sale, exchange 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.

In addition, the constructive ownership rules of Section 1260 of the Internal Revenue Code could possibly apply to your notes. If your notes were subject to the constructive ownership rules, then any long-term capital gain that you realize upon the sale, exchange or maturity of your notes would be re-characterized as ordinary income (and you would be subject to an interest charge on deferred tax liability with respect to such re-characterized capital gain) to the extent that such capital gain exceeds the amount of “net underlying long-term capital gain” (as defined in Section 1260 of the Internal Revenue Code). Because the application of the constructive ownership rules is unclear you are strongly urged to consult your tax advisor with respect to the possible application of the constructive ownership rules to your investment in the notes.

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 applicable original 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 or maturity of your notes would be treated as ordinary interest income. Any loss you recognize at that time would be treated as 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, as capital loss.

If the rules governing contingent payment debt instruments apply, special rules would apply to persons who purchase a note at 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 would be treated as ordinary gain or loss. You should consult your tax

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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 also possible that the Internal Revenue Service could assert that your notes should be treated as giving rise to “collectibles” gain or loss if you have held your notes for more than one year, although we do not think such a treatment would be appropriate in this case because a sale or exchange of the notes is not a sale or exchange of a collectible but is rather a sale or exchange of a derivative contract that reflects the value of an equity interest in an entity that tracks the value of a collectible. “Collectibles” gain is currently subject to tax at marginal rates of up to 28%.

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

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.

In addition, 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 the 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.  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 above unless and until such time as Congress, the Treasury Department or the Internal Revenue Service determine that some other treatment is more appropriate.

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.

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 the notes and are, for U.S. federal income tax purposes:

You will also 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 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

PS-23

 

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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 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 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 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 underlier 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, 2023, 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.

 

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SUPPLEMENTAL PLAN OF DISTRIBUTION; CONFLICTS OF INTEREST

See “Supplemental Plan of Distribution” on page S-35 of the accompanying general terms supplement no. 8,671 and “Plan of Distribution — Conflicts of Interest” on page 125 of the accompanying prospectus. GS Finance Corp. estimates that its share of the total offering expenses, excluding underwriting discounts and commissions, will be approximately $10,000.

GS Finance Corp. will sell to GS&Co., and GS&Co. will purchase from GS Finance Corp., the aggregate face amount of the offered notes specified on the front cover of this pricing supplement.

GS&Co. proposes initially to offer the notes to the public at the original issue price set forth on the cover page of this pricing supplement, and to certain securities dealers at such price less a concession not in excess of 2.93% of the face amount.

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. We have been advised that GS&Co. will also pay a fee in connection with the distribution of the notes to SIMON Markets LLC, a broker-dealer affiliated with GS Finance Corp.

We will deliver the notes against payment therefor in New York, New York on November 30, 2020. 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.

The notes will not be listed on any securities exchange or interdealer quotation system.

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VALIDITY OF THE NOTES AND GUARANTEE

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 pricing supplement have been executed and issued by GS Finance Corp., such notes have been authenticated by the trustee pursuant to the indenture, and such notes 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) the guarantee with respect to such notes 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 1, 2020, 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 1, 2020.

 

 

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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 pricing supplement, the accompanying general terms supplement no. 8,671, 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 pricing supplement, the accompanying general terms supplement no. 8,671, 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 pricing supplement, the accompanying general terms supplement no. 8,671, the accompanying prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus is current only as of the respective dates of such documents.  

 

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Pricing Supplement

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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$502,000

 

 

GS Finance Corp.

 

 

Leveraged Buffered ETF-Linked Notes due 2023

 

guaranteed by

The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc.

 

 

Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC

 

 

 

 

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