One of Goldman Sachs' most senior directors in Europe, who for five years was co-head of the European M&A advisory group and was most recently chief operating officer, has retired from the bank after over 20 years.
London-based Glenn Earle, chief operating officer for Goldman Sachs in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, is to leave the company, a spokeswoman confirmed today.
Earle took on the role in 2006, following the departure of Paul Deighton who had quit the company the year before to become chief executive of the London Olympic Games Organizing Committee.
He was made partner in 1996 and during his tenure had been co-chairman of the commitments committee, a group of senior bankers responsible for vetting all client assignments taken on by Goldman's investment bankers.
An internal memo seen by Financial News said Earle's role would be taken over by Robin Vince, global head of operations, who would also become head of the Federation for the firm's businesses in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Vince will also become a member of the firm's European Management Committee.
The memo said Earle would stay on as an advisory director until the end of this year.
According to last year's Sunday Times Rich List, Earle and fellow Goldman Sachs partner Michael Sherwood saw their fortunes rise more then most of their contemporaries in 2009. The average wealth of individuals working in banking, who appeared on the 2010 list, rose by 20% in 2009. This helped wipe out much of the losses incurred during the credit crunch.
Earle's previous roles at Goldman included a stint as co-head of the European M&A advisory group between 1999 and 2004.
Last month, Earle was appointed as a director to Teach First, an independent educational charity founded in 2002 which seeks to recruit exceptional graduates into teaching and place them in challenging schools, according to filings at Companies House.
The Prince of Wales is the charity's patron, and the board of trustees is chaired by Dame Julia Cleverdon, the former chief of Business in the Community, and includes George Iacobescu CBE, the chairman and chief executive of Canary Wharf Group.
Elizabeth Pfeuti and Matt Turner are reporters for Financial News, where this story originally appeared. Write to Elizabeth and Matt.