Tim O'Neill's Departure Further Reduces Goldman's Elite Group

Only eight remain of one of the most renowned clubs in Goldman Sachs Group Inc.'s history.

Prior to Goldman Sachs becoming a public company in 1999, there were 221 individuals who held the esteemed title of partner. With the departure of Tim O'Neill, the group of pre-IPO partners is now one step closer to disappearing.

This week, the retirement of a 69-year-old individual was announced, signifying the conclusion of a nearly four-decade-long career with the company in various departments.

Lloyd Blankfein, the former CEO of Goldman Sachs, commented that he knows many people who believe they are the most intelligent person in any given room. He then added that Tim is an exception to this, as he is actually the smartest person in the room.

Prior to O'Neill's start at Goldman in 1985, he and Blankfein had already worked together at the law firm founded by William "Wild Bill" Donovan, who is widely recognized as the creator of the modern Central Intelligence Agency.

After decades of debate, Goldman Sachs became one of the last major financial institutions to go public. This momentous occasion marked a new era of wealth for its top executives and a major shift for the company, which had been successful and influential for over a century but was now relinquishing some of its privacy.

The partnership has expanded to include around 400 executives, though its prestige has diminished as Goldman Sachs has let go of certain aspects of its culture while still keeping the title.

With O'Neill's departure, Rich Friedman is now the bank's most senior partner, having been promoted to the top rank in 1990. During his time at Goldman, Friedman has been instrumental in developing the bank's private equity-style business arm.

Friedman expressed his sadness at Tim's departure, saying, "It's a real loss for us. He was a great friend, a long-time partner and one of the best we've ever had. When someone leaves, it's natural to become reflective. We're not just robots here."

Goldman Sachs has a list of partners who have not yet gone public with their investments.

In 2020, O'Neill was most widely recognized for his position in charge of Goldman's investment-management division, which managed the firm's assets and wealth. He was then appointed to a role in which he provided counsel to the company's senior executives.

After 37 years, he began his career at Goldman Sachs in the J. Aron group, which had been acquired by Goldman a few years prior. During his time there, he was able to help grow the foreign-exchange business.

Jim O'Neill made a number of important contributions to Goldman Sachs. He was responsible for the development of the Goldman Sachs Commodity Index, which encouraged institutional investors to invest in commodities. He also played a key role in the firm's entry into power trading and even established an insurance business that was purchased by KKR & Co. in 2020 for more than $4 billion.

He played a major role in the establishment and success of Intercontinental Exchange Inc.

Jeff Sprecher, CEO of ICE, expressed in an interview how difficult it is to downplay the importance of the part he played in constructing the company.

Sprecher remembered how the new business had contacted 107 companies in its first two years of operation until O'Neill became involved and assisted in gaining access to them without wanting any recognition.

He declared that the individual behind the curtain was the Wizard from The Wizard of Oz.