Not long after JPMorgan Chase opted for the auction of its Treasury-held warrants, Goldman Sachs has moved to buy back the warrants at "full and fair" value, according to CNNMoney.

It paid $1.1 billion for warrants that were issued along with TARP funds. Overall, taxpayers have received a 23 percent annualized return on their $10 billion investment last fall in Goldman. There has been a lot of concern that taxpayers would not benefit from the warrant-buyback transactions. Goldman Sachs could have played hardball, the way JPMorgan is.

But why run the risk of stoking the anti-Goldman Sachs sentiment that has been festering? Given its rich largesse, it's much better to pay full value as determined by Treasury than deal with even more PR fallout. Other banks now may feel pressure to follow suit. 

For more:
- here's the CNNMoney article

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