Goldman Sachs has named Russell Horwitz as its next chief of staff, beginning Sept. 5, according to a memo seen Tuesday by The New York Times, Bloomberg, Reuters and the Financial Times.
The move marks a return to Goldman for Horwitz, a 16-year veteran of the bank who joined as a speechwriter to then-CEO Hank Paulson, ascended to chief of staff for the CEO under Paulson’s successor, Lloyd Blankfein, and left in 2020 as deputy chief of staff for the company, according to his LinkedIn profile.
“The opportunity to go back in this capacity, it felt right for a million reasons,” Horwitz told the Financial Times.
Since leaving Goldman, Horwitz has served as chief global affairs officer at Citadel. He rejoins Goldman as a partner and a member of the management committee, according to the memo.
“Russell will oversee the operations of the executive office, including corporate communications, government and regulatory affairs, and corporate engagement,” Goldman CEO David Solomon told staff, according to Bloomberg.
Among Horwitz’s most lasting contributions from his first stint at Goldman, he helped the bank negotiate settlements in the 1MDB case. Blankfein, according to Bloomberg, had described Horwitz as the most important person at Goldman whose role nobody knows.
Horwitz replaces John Rogers, who joined Goldman in 1994. Although Rogers is stepping back next month from his duties as chief of staff, he’ll remain an executive vice president, secretary to Goldman’s board of directors, a member of its management committee and the leader of the bank’s philanthropic efforts, according to the memo.
Rogers "has increasingly been spending significant time on the regulatory landscape, as we manage the greatest amount of rule-making since Dodd-Frank," Solomon said, according to Reuters. "John will continue to focus on these areas.”
This year has been one of marked turnover among top executives at Goldman Sachs. Most recently, Julian Salisbury, the bank’s CIO of asset and wealth management — and, previously, global co-head of asset management — announced he was leaving Goldman to become co-chief investment officer at Sixth Street Partners.
