James Gorman plans to step down as chief govt of Morgan Stanley inside the subsequent yr after greater than a decade on the high of the Wall Road financial institution he was a wealth administration juggernaut.
Gorman, 64, advised the financial institution’s annual shareholder assembly on Friday that the “particular timing of the CEO transition has not been decided, however it’s the board’s and my expectation that it’ll happen sooner or later within the subsequent 12 months”.
He added that he anticipated to turn into govt chair “for a time frame” after handing over to his successor.
Gorman stated Morgan Stanley’s board had “recognized three very robust senior inner candidates for consideration as the subsequent CEO”.
Based on folks accustomed to the matter, the main candidates to take over are co-presidents Ted Decide and Andy Saperstein, who oversee Morgan Stanley’s institutional securities and wealth administration divisions, respectively, and Dan Simkowitz, head of the funding administration unit.
Chief working officer Jonathan Pruzan had been one other main contender to take over from Gorman however he departed earlier this yr.
Morgan Stanley shares have been down 0.6 per cent in early Wall Road buying and selling on Friday morning.
Australian-born Gorman changed John Mack as chief govt at first of 2010, having beforehand been Morgan Stanley’s co-president accountable for international wealth administration, funding administration and operations. He grew to become chair in 2012.
His appointment 13 years in the past underscored Morgan Stanley’s intention to develop in wealth administration and diversify away from its legacy funding banking and buying and selling companies.
Gorman has doubled down on wealth and asset administration with the acquisitions in recent times of ETrade and Eaton Vance. The financial institution’s market capitalisation has tripled beneath his management to about $140bn.
Nevertheless, his tenure has not been with out blemish. The financial institution is being investigated by US authorities over its block buying and selling enterprise and this month stated it was in talks about settling the case.
Gorman advised shareholders on the investor occasion final yr that he had no imminent plans to step down from the financial institution.
Together with Jamie Dimon at JPMorgan Chase and Brian Moynihan at Financial institution of America, Gorman is amongst a clutch of Wall Road financial institution chiefs who’ve bucked a broader development of shorter govt tenures at US firms.
