As the saying goes: Timing is everything. Charges brought by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC news) and an investigation into Goldman Sachs' (NYSE: GS) corporate abuses developed just as legislators were drafting financial reform. The House and Senate are expected to pass a final bill July 4 that will restructure industry regulations and resolve issues, such as those used in the Abacus deal.

Goldman's CDO, (CDO news) Abacus 2007-AC1, was sold to investors in April 2007 when the U.S. housing and mortgage markets were beginning to falter. In April 2010, the firm came under fire for failing to disclose to investors that the hedge fund manager who helped select the collateral was also making considerable bets against them.

Settlement discussions between Goldman and the SEC are underway, and many believe the firm will be fined and forced to alter some business practices. Here, FierceFinance takes a look at the scandal surrounding the Abacus deal and shares its take on the winners and losers who emerged from these events.

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