Robert Edward Diamond Jr. is an American banker and former chief executive officer of Barclays plc. In 2010, he became its president and deputy group chief executive; and in January 2011, succeeded John Varley as group chief executive of Barclays.
Diamond resigned as chief executive of Barclays after a Bank of England hearing on July 3, 2012, following controversy over manipulation of Libor interest rates by traders employed by the bank.
Early years and education
One of nine children, Diamond grew up in a Roman Catholic family of Irish descent. His parents, Anne and Robert Edward Diamond Sr. were both teachers.
He finished his schooling from Concord-Carlisle High School in 1969 and in 1973, obtained a B.A. in economics with honours from Colby College in Waterville, Maine. He was a member of the Phi Delta Theta fraternity at Colby. He was awarded an MBA from the University of Connecticut Business School, graduating first in his class.
Banking career
Early years and Morgan Stanley: 1976 to 1992
Diamond began his career as a lecturer at the School of Business, University of Connecticut from 1976 to 1977. Diamond then briefly worked for United States Surgical Corporation in Norwalk, Connecticut, in the IT department. He joined Morgan Stanley in 1979 and held several positions. He rose to the post of managing director and head of fixed income trading division.
CS First Boston: 1992 to 1996
Diamond joined CS First Boston in 1992. Based in Tokyo, he was chairman, president and chief executive officer of CS First Boston Pacific, responsible for investment banking, equity, fixed income and foreign exchange for the Pacific region. Diamond was formerly vice chairman and head of global fixed income and foreign exchange.
Barclays PLC: 1996 to 2012
Diamond joined Barclays on July 4, 1996, and in September 1997 became a member of the executive committee of the company, Britain's second largest banking group.
Diamond was appointed chief executive of corporate & investment banking and wealth management, comprising Barclays Capital, Barclays Corporate and Barclays Bank, and was an executive director of the boards of Barclays Plc and Barclays Bank Plc.
Diamond became a leading candidate to succeed Matthew Barrett as group chief executive of Barclays Plc in 2004, but that post instead went to John Varley, who was five years younger than Diamond. In 2005, Diamond was appointed president of Barclays Plc and joined its board of directors, while also remaining chief executive of Barclays Capital.
On 30 June 2006, The Wall Street Journal ran a front page, column one, article detailing how Barclays Capital was making a giant portion of its income not through legitimate investment banking activities but through a tax dodge, a so-called "double dip", which was essentially paid for by the British and American taxpayer. The revelation angered Parliament, the Bank of England, and UK and US tax authorities and the scam was outlawed. It also contributed to Lord Mandelson, UK Business Secretary, labelling Diamond "the unacceptable face of banking".
Diamond headed Barclays' bid to purchase Lehman Brothers in September 2008, but that was stymied by the Bank of England, thereby avoiding Barclays buying an investment bank that was later known to be bankrupt. Diamond then sealed an agreement with Lehman Brothers President and COO Bart McDade to purchase key assets of that firm after it filed for bankruptcy, which instantly gave Barclays an investment banking foothold on Wall Street. Diamond became deputy group chief executive on October 1, 2010, and then succeeded John Varley as Group Chief Executive on January 1, 2011.
On July 2, 2012, Barclays' chairman, Marcus Agius, resigned following the heavy fine that Barclays suffered as a result of some of their company employees being involved in manipulating the London Interbank Offered Rate, which became known as the LIBOR scandal. Just 24 hours later, on July 3, Diamond resigned his post with immediate effect. Diamond's longtime protege, Jerry del Missier, who had been appointed chief operating officer of Barclays on June 22, 2012, resigned on July 2, 2012.