Gold-Catalyzed Allylation of Aryl Boronic Acids: Accessing Cross-Coupling Reactivity with Gold

A sp(3)-sp(2) C-C cross-coupling reaction catalyzed by gold in the absence of a sacrificial oxidant is described. Vital to the success of this method is the implementation of a bimetallic catalyst bearing a bis(phosphino) amine ligand. A mechanistic hypothesis is presented, and observable transmetalation, C Br oxidative addition, and C-C reductive elimination in a model gold complex are shown. We expect that this method will serve as a platform for the development of novel transformations involving redox-active gold catalysts.