Oct 8 (Reuters) - Goldman Sachs Group ( GS ) said in an

internal memo seen by Reuters that Alvaro del Castano, its

co-head for Spain and Portugal and in charge of private wealth

management in the region, will retire after more than three

decades at the bank.

He is leaving the bank after writing opinion pieces critical

of U.S. President Donald Trump and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro

Sanchez, according to Bloomberg News, which first reported his

departure on Wednesday.

Del Castano did not immediately respond to a Reuters request

for comment made via LinkedIn message.

He wrote political columns for Spanish-language publication

The Objective, criticizing Trump and Sanchez, the report said.

The articles were deleted earlier this year after Bloomberg

News contacted Goldman, which said at the time it was unaware of

the columns and that they did not represent the firm's views.

Del Castano joined Goldman Sachs ( GS ) in 1993 as an associate in

equity derivatives and later held roles in investment banking.

He went on to oversee business development in the Iberian

Peninsula and Latin America for asset management and was named

managing director in 2002.

His departure was announced to staffers last month in an

internal memo, the report said.

"Alvaro has had an excellent 30-plus-year career at the firm

and has decided to retire from Goldman Sachs ( GS ). We look forward to

continuing to work with him on matters that benefit our

clients," a Goldman Sachs ( GS ) spokesperson said.