Goldman Sachs, and hedge fund Paulson & Co, both claim that Paulson was relatively unknown when it was involved with the controversial Abacus transaction – but looking back suggests otherwise.

The embattled US bank submitted documents last September to the SEC, defending its position on the Abacus CDO. In the documents, it said that Paulson was relatively unknown at the time of the Abacus deal in early 2007, meaning his involvement on the short side of the transaction would have been immaterial to long investors. Yesterday, Paulson took the same line, writing in a letter to investors that the firm wasn't seen as an experienced investor in mortgages at the time http://bit.ly/cHLUke.