James Moore: Goldman's masters of the universe are still winners

Outlook Don't be fooled by the headline numbers – Goldman Sachs' net earnings might have fallen by 23 per cent, but that was a whole lot better than Wall Street expected.

Despite a torrent of negative publicity, it is still the world's top deal adviser and, while the dividend was up, its masters of the universe are the real winners. They pocketed 44 per cent of its revenues.

Facebook might have shunned it, but the "deep and broad client franchise" chief executive Lloyd Blankfein gushed about are still very much on board. Whether he'll still be smiling when the regulators are done is another matter.

Public disgust has hardly slowed the juggernaut. The Basel supervisors and the Volker rule – which closes the casino by stopping banks using their own cash to make bets – might.