Goldman Sachs Group Inc has quietly offered some top clients a tool that allows them to plug into its trading system and buy or sell large blocks of stock electronically. The technology is part of a broader platform called Marquee, details of which not been previously reported, but were confirmed to Reuters by Goldman executives. It is the latest attempt by a Wall Street bank to automate block trading, a small sliver of the equities business that is still handled mostly by humans rather than specialized computer programs. Block trades involve at least 10,000 shares or $200,000 worth of stock and are often used to get clients out of a pinch. When clients really want to buy shares or must offload shares, they are willing to pay a little more to guarantee liquidity and hands-on service. Prices are set based on the bank's inventory and market conditions - the more Goldman wants to reduce its exposure to a stock, the cheaper it is for a client to buy. The more the firm wants the stock,
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