Berkshire Taps Former AmEx CEO Kenneth Chenault for Board As Bill Gates Steps Aside
Warren Buffetts Berkshire Hathaway said on Friday that former American Express Chief Executive Offic..
Warren Buffetts Berkshire Hathaway said on Friday that former American Express Chief Executive Officer Kenneth Chenault has been nominated to the conglomerates board of directors, replacing Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates.
The change was disclosed in Berkshires annual proxy filing, ahead of its scheduled May 2 annual meeting.
Chenault, 68, led New York-based American Express from January 2001 to February 2018, and became one of the most prominent black CEOs in corporate America.
Berkshire knows Chenault well, having long been American Expresss largest shareholder, and ending 2019 with an 18.7 percent stake in the travel and financial services company.
Gates, 64, has known Buffett since 1991 and been a Berkshire director since 2004, but now devotes most of his attention to philanthropy, including the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
He is also the worlds second-richest person, worth $103.6 billion according to Forbes magazine. Buffett ranks fourth, at $76 billion.
Microsoft announced separately on Friday that Gates stepped down from its board.
In Fridays filing, Berkshire also recommended that shareholders reject a proposal by four New York City public pension plans that lists of outside candidates for board seats include “qualified female and racially/ethnically diverse candidates.”
Three members of Berkshires 14-person board are women, and Chenault would become the only black director.
Berkshire said it has for decades “forcefully” preferred directors with integrity, business savvy, an owner-responsive mindset, and a deep personal interest in the company.
It said Chenault emerged as a “standout and unanimous choice” after its governance committee reviewed 23 candidates for board seats last year.
Berkshire said it may choose future board members from that list, noting that four directors, including Buffett, are between 89 and 96 years old.
