Fong stated that RET filed its request over the summer, but emphasized that the request is a process, in which there is considerable back-and-forth between the IRS and RET.

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Goldman officials hoped to win clearance quickly, but the request has been caught up in the wider process of setting a dividend-increase policy for all U.S. banks overseen by the Fed, said people familiar with the matter.

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And McCulloch says he has no plans to request contract talks while other players are in the process of trying to secure their immediate futures.

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