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Charles Schwab’s longtime chief executive Walt Bettinger will retire at the end of the year and be replaced by the company’s president Rick Wurster.
Bettinger took over from the company’s namesake in late 2008 and oversaw its growth following the financial crisis, its acquisition of TD Ameritrade and a period of outflows in the fallout from the US regional banking crisis last year.
The brokerage, which last year disclosed plans to lay off about 5 per cent of its 33,000-strong workforce, is trying to turn around its fortunes after a difficult period when rising interest rates led to substantial outflows from its banking division.
During Bettinger’s 16 years in charge, client assets increased to $9.7tn from $1.1tn and the company’s market capitalisation has risen more than 500 per cent to about $116bn. He will continue to co-chair the board, alongside founder Charles Schwab.
“Walt’s successful tenure as CEO saw the most significant growth in the company’s history in terms of clients, assets, revenue, profits, and market capitalisation,” Schwab said in a statement.
Wurster joined the Texas-based company in 2016 after stints at Wellington Management and McKinsey. He has been president of Charles Schwab since 2019 when it shook up the brokerage world by eliminating trading fees.
Schwab said Wurster “possesses all the attributes to be a successful CEO, and he has the full confidence and support of myself and the board”.
Wurster’s appointment comes months after the company in May announced that chief financial officer Peter Crawford would step down and eventually be replaced by Mike Verdeschi, a veteran of Citigroup. Schwab’s chief operating officer and head of adviser services also ceded their roles as part of that shift in power.
The transition “seems natural following other senior leadership changes”, TD Cowen analysts wrote in a note Tuesday, adding that critical questions for the future would focus on Schwab’s strategy for its bank and its long-term organic growth rate.
Charles Schwab shares were down 1.4 per cent during mid-morning trading in New York on Tuesday, while the S&P 500 was down 1 per cent in a broad sell-off. The company’s share price is down 7.5 per cent so far in 2024 but has gained about 80 per cent over the past five years.
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