NEW YORK, March 12 (Reuters) - Goldman Sachs ( GS ) CEO

David Solomon told Fox Business on Wednesday he expects initial

public offerings (IPOs) to increase this year.

"IPOs have been muted over the last couple of years, the

pipeline is larger and we expect an increase this year," he said

in an interview with the news channel.

Solomon said the level of uncertainty is a little bit higher at

this moment which has kept some transactions on the sidelines,

but added that could change if there is more regulatory clarity.

"There is potential, especially if we got more specific

actions on the regulatory front, to unleash more animal

spirits," he said.

Investment banking activity has picked up in recent months,

with Wall Street executives welcoming President Trump's

business-friendly tone.

But U.S. mergers and acquisition activity in the first two

months of 2025 has seen just 1,603 deals signed through Friday,

making it the slowest pace by volume since 2009, Dealogic data

showed.

On Tuesday, Trump defended his use of tariffs and said they

could multiply as he met with the CEOs of America's biggest

companies, many of whom have watched their market value crater

over recession and inflation fears.

Solomon, who attended the meeting, said CEOs were looking

for policy certainty from the administration.

"The more we can have certainty on the policy agenda as we

move forward, the better that's going to support capital

investment and growth," he said.