Marshall Carter Is Elected NYSE Chairman
Marshall N. Carter, former chairman and chief executive of State Street Corp., was elected chairman of the New York Stock Exchange’s board of directors, the exchange said Thursday.
With experience in dealing with government as well as with Wall Street, Carter had been the front-runner to succeed John Reed, the former co-CEO of Citigroup Inc. who took over the chairmanship in September 2003, after former Chairman and CEO Richard A. Grasso resigned amid controversy over his pay package.
“It’s a great privilege to chair the board of the world’s leading equities market,” Carter said in a statement.
“My colleagues on the board of directors, the board of executives and the management team will continue to ensure the preeminence of the NYSE and America’s capital marketplace.”
NYSE spokesman Ray Pellecchia said the board also discussed the work of a task force headed by NYSE Chief Executive John Thain that was exploring the possibility of the exchange shedding its not-for- profit status and becoming a for-profit business.
Pellecchia said he did not know whether any decisions were made on the exchange’s status.
Carter, 64, brings a great deal of experience to the job, not all of which stems from his 25 years in finance.
A decorated Marine officer wounded in combat in Vietnam, Carter also has been a White House fellow and has headed a government task force dealing with global securities.
His contacts in Washington could give the NYSE better political standing as the Securities and Exchange Commission prepares to implement stock-trading regulations approved Wednesday.
Carter joined State Street in 1991 as president and chief operating officer, then became CEO in 1992 and added the post of chairman in 1993. He retired in 2001. Before joining State Street, he worked at Chase Manhattan Bank.
Reed became chairman of the NYSE after Grasso’s resignation over his $187.5-million pay package, which drew intense criticism over its size and scope. In May, Grasso was sued by New York Atty. Gen. Eliot Spitzer, who sought to return at least $100 million to the NYSE; the court battle continues.
Thain makes $4 million a year in salary and bonuses. Carter will receive $250,000 annually as chairman, Pellecchia said.
Reed, who started as an interim chairman and then agreed to a one-year term, oversaw Thain’s hiring as CEO and guided the board through the Grasso crisis.
At the close of Thursday’s session, the NYSE marked Reed’s departure by having the former chairman ring the closing bell.
