E*Trade Financial’s CEO Donald Layton is to step down at the end of the year when his contract ends, after a two-year term. E*Trade will conduct a search for Layton’s successor and expects to name a new CEO before that time, the company said yesterday. A company spokesperson said Layton’s exit will be in accordance with the two-year contract he signed, reported the Wall Street Journal. Layton joined E*Trade’s board in late 2007, and soon after that agreed to become CEO through the end of this year. His tenure has been marked by efforts to shrink the company’s balance sheet, inject capital into its banking unit, and strengthen its prized brokerage business. E*Trade’s board will pay Layton $375,000 per month through the end of the year, before he steps down from his post, according to a securities filing. He is eligible to receive an additional $1.5 million at the end of the year “in return for his commitment to assist with the search for and transition to a successor,” the company said in the SEC filing. Layton’s departure comes as Citadel Investment Group, E*Trade’s largest shareholder and bondholder, has taken a greater role in the company.
E*Trade CEO Layton to Step Down
His tenure has been marked by efforts to shrink the company’s balance sheet, inject capital into its banking unit and strengthen its prized brokerage business.
September 10, 2009