Goldman Sachs' earnings almost tripled in the fourth quarter, easily beating analysts' estimates, as investment banking revenues surged.
The investment bank said it earned $2.83 billion after paying preferred dividends, compared with $978m a year earlier.
Its debt underwriting business profited from a rally in bonds and a surge in demand for debt securities.
Goldman's debt underwriting business earned $1.96 billion in revenues for the year, its second-best annual performance and the highest since 2007.
''While economic conditions remained challenging for much of the last year, the strengths of our business model and client franchise, coupled with our focus on disciplined management, delivered solid performance for our shareholders," Goldman's chief executive Lloyd Blankfein said.
The bank's compensation cost rose 6% to $12.94 billion for 2012, while the bank also reduced its headcount by 3% to 32,400. That means that the average employee at the bank earns almost $400,000 a year.
Goldman differs from other big US banks because it deals almost exclusively with institutions, rather than consumers. Its clients are usually mutual funds, international corporations, other banks and similar firms.
Revenue for the fourth quarter rose to $9.24 billion, 53% higher than the same time a year ago, beating analysts' estimates of $7.97 billion.
Goldman earned $5.60 on a per-share basis, compared with the average analysts forecast of $3.71, according to forecasts.
