Morgan Stanley chief executive James Gorman will step down as the company’s head within the next 12 months, he said on Friday at the bank’s annual shareholder meeting.
“The specific timing of the CEO transition has not been determined, but it is the Board’s and my expectation that it will occur at some point in the next 12 months. That is the current expectation in the absence of a major change in the external environment,” Gorman said Friday.
Gorman, who is one of the longest-serving heads of a US bank, became CEO in January 2010.
He will assume the role of executive chairman for “a period of time” to help Morgan Stanley transition to its next era of leadership, Gorman, 64, said.
The board of directors has three senior internal candidates in the pipeline to potentially take over as the next chief executive.
Gorman also said that he believes Morgan Stanley is well insulated from turmoil in the banking sector after the collapses of three regional lenders.
“In my now long career, I’ve seen a lot of environments. Some challenging, some not. Some crisis, some not,” he said. “I remain extraordinarily optimistic about the future Morgan Stanley and our broader economy.”
