Goldman Sachs has reopened the US market for unguaranteed bank bonds with the successful sale of $2bn (€1.55bn) worth of 10-year notes, in a deal that marks an important litmus test of investor confidence in the bank and the broader banking sector.

Goldman Sachs was lead arranger on the sale yesterday, which was the first unguaranteed bond issue from a US bank since the US government, through the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, introduced the guarantee at the end of November last year.