Goldman buys home improvement lender GreenSky in all-stock deal

Reuters said on Wednesday that it would buy GreenSky Inc., a financial platform offering consumer loans for home improvement, in an all-stock deal worth $2.24 billion.

The deal implies a per share price of $12.11 for each BlueSky Class A common stock, representing a 55% premium to the company's closing price on Tuesday.

The Atlanta-based GreenSky, which went public at a valuation of about $4 billion in 2018 has provided home improvement loans to about four million customers.

Its purchase will further bulk up Goldman's consumer banking unit Marcus, named after one of the bank's founders and is a key plank for Chief Executive David Solomon's plan to reduce Goldman's reliance on volatile trading and investment banking revenues.

We have been clear with our aspiration for Solomon to become the next platform for consumer banking services and the acquisition of GreenSky advances this goal, Marcus said in a statement.

Reuters reported https: www.reuters.com/reuters.html. A business exclusive-goldman - eyes-deals boost-marcus sources - 2021 01 - 15 earlier this year that Goldman was considering acquisitions to build out Marcus after the Wall Street firm slowed loan and deposit growth at the business in the wake of COVID - 19 pandemic.