John Thain
 |
John Thain | |
|---|---|
 Thain in 2006. | |
| Born | John Alexander Thain May 26, 1955 |
| Occupation(s) | president of global banking, securities, and wealth management at Bank of America |
| Board member of | INSEAD, MIT Sloan School of Management, National Urban League |
John Alexander Thain (born May 26, 1955) is the current president of global banking, securities, and wealth management at Bank of America. He was also the last chairman and chief executive officer of Merrill Lynch before its acquisition by Bank of America for $50 billion. The Associated Press identified him as the best-paid CEO in 2007, among S&P 500 companies.
Career
Previously, Mr. Thain held management positions at: the New York Stock Exchange (CEO), and Goldman Sachs (President, Chief Operating Officer, Chief Financial Officer). He amassed $300 million in Goldman stock. It was widely believed that Mr. Thain was also a front runner to head Citigroup.[2][3][4] Merrill Lynch and Citigroup sought new leaders following the sudden departure of their former CEOs due to disappointing Q3 2007 earnings reports.[5][6]
Thain will be president of Global Banking, Securities and Wealth Management, a new division of Bank of America that will include its corporate and investment bank and most of its wealth and investment-management business once the merger is completed.[7]
Compensation
In December 2003 NYSE interim Chairman John Reed, told The Wall Street Journal that Thain would be paid "a plain vanilla number" - about $4 million a year, including bonuses, with no "strange retirement" programs like former CEO Dick Grasso was paid.
Merrill Lynch announced that Mr. Thain will receive at least $50 million per year in compensation and could achieve as much as $120 million per year, depending on the company's stock price. Based on a formula by the Associated Press[1], in 2007 Thain was the best-paid CEO among the S&P 500 companies, receiving $83.1 million.
Memberships
Mr. Thain's memberships include:
- MIT Corporation, Dean's Advisory Council – MIT Sloan School of Management,
- INSEAD – U.S. National Advisory Board,
- James Madison Council of the Library of Congress,
- Federal Reserve Bank of New York's International Capital Markets Advisory Committee[8],
- French-American Foundation[9],
- Board of Trustees of the National Urban League, and
- the Trilateral Commission[10]
He serves as a governor at the New York-Presbyterian Foundation, Inc.[11]
Political donations
John Thain donated $332,950 to politically affilated groups/individuals: $208,000 to Republicans, $16,000 to Democrats, and $108,750 to special interest groups.[12]
Personal life
Thain was born in the United States and grew up in Antioch, Illinois. He earned a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from MIT in 1977 and an MBA from Harvard Business School in 1979. While attending MIT, John joined the Delta Upsilon Fraternity.
Thain's son Alex also attended MIT. His daughter, Nicole, graduated from Yale University and his second daughter, Victoria, is an undergraduate at Duke University.
References
- ^ a b "List of highest-paid CEOs in 2007". Associated Press. ap.google.com. 2008-06. Retrieved 2008-06-20.
The total pay figures are rounded, and are based on the AP's compensation formula, which adds up salary, perks, bonuses, above-market interest on pay set aside for later, and company estimates for the value of stock options and stock awards on the day they were granted last year.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ John Thain to Head Citi?
- ^ John Thain, taking over Merrill's helm, is no longer a prospect for the leaderless Citigroup - International Herald Tribune
- ^ Citi Snub: Thain Going To Merrill - New York Post
- ^ At Merrill Lynch, accountability for a record loss on Wall Street - International Herald Tribune
- ^ Worcester Telegram & Gazette News
- ^ http://www.boston.com/business/ticker/2008/10/merrills_john_t.html
- ^ Federal Reserve Bank Of New York
- ^ French American Foundation aims to strengthen the French American relationship
- ^ Goldman's Thain Trades Money For Fame - Forbes.com
- ^ Presbyterian Foundation
- ^ NEWSMEAT ▷ John Thain's Federal Campaign Contribution Report
External links
- Merrill Lynch Press Release: John A. Thain Named Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, from the company's website
- Articles needing cleanup from December 2007
- Cleanup tagged articles without a reason field from December 2007
- Wikipedia pages needing cleanup from December 2007
- 1955 births
- Living people
- Greek-Americans
- American businesspeople
- American chief executives
- Merrill Lynch
- Goldman Sachs people
- People from Lake County, Illinois
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology alumni
- Harvard Business School alumni
- New York Stock Exchange