Career
After several months, he became a clerk in the municipal bond department eventually becoming a trader. He rose quickly through the company and became a full partner at the age of thirty four. In 1978, Billy Salomon named Gutfreund to succeed him as head of the firm. becoming the highest paid Wall Street executive at the time.
When Gutfreund was CEO of Salomon Brothers, a major scandal took place regarding the way Treasury bond trading was done by Salomon Brothers. Paul Mozer, a rogue trader, was submitting bids in excess of what was allowed by the Treasury rules. When this was discovered and brought to the attention of Gutfreund, he did not immediately suspend the rogue trader. This, however, did not sit well with Warren Buffett who had just acquired a stock position in Salomon Brothers for Berkshire Hathaway. As a result of the scandal, Gutfreund was forced to resign in 1991.
Since January 2002, Gutfreund has been Senior Managing Director and Executive Committee Member of the investment bank C.E. Unterberg, Towbin. He is also President of Gutfreund & Company, a New York-based financial consulting firm that specialized in advising corporations and financial institutions in the United States, Europe, and Asia.
Read more about this topic: John Gutfreund
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