Ally Financial taps Goldman vet for CFO seat

Dive Brief:

Digital bank and auto financing company Ally Financial said Friday that it hired Goldman Sachs veteran Russell Hutchinson to serve as its CFO, effective July 3.
Hutchinson, who has spent more than two decades at Goldman Sachs, currently serves as chief operating officer for global mergers and acquisitions at the company, after holding the position of chief strategy officer. He will report to Ally’s CEO and be based in Charlotte, N.C., according to a press release.
Bradley Brown, who has served as Ally’s interim CFO since October, will return to his full-time role as corporate treasurer when Hutchinson arrives, the release said.

Dive Insight:

Ally, which is headquartered in Detroit, reported in January that it generated total revenues of $8.4 billion in 2022, an increase of about 2.4% over the prior year.

Last year, Berkshire Hathaway, run by billionaire Warren Buffett, tripled its stake in the company to 30 million shares, up from about 9 million, according to Reuters.

Hutchinson is expected to start off with an annual base salary of $750,000, Ally said in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing.

Ally CEO Jeffrey Brown praised Hutchinson for his “long-standing appreciation and respect” for the company’s culture as well as existing relationships with its stakeholders and board of directors.

"I have known Russ since my arrival to our company in 2009, and he has been one of my most reliable and trusted outside advisers,” he said in the release.

Prior to his current role at Goldman Sachs, Hutchinson served as a chief strategy officer from 2020 to 2022, according to the SEC filing. Prior to that, he served as head of Financial Institutions M&A in the Americas and a senior coverage officer focused on clients in the specialty finance sector for four years.

From 2013 to 2015, he served as co-head of the specialty finance team within the Financial Institutions Group. Hutchinson initially joined Goldman Sachs as a summer associate in 2000 and rejoined as an associate in 2001. He was named managing director in 2008 and partner in 2016.

Before joining Goldman Sachs, he began his career as an associate consultant at the Boston Consulting Group in its Toronto office.

Hutchinson earned a Bachelor of Science in Engineering Physics from Queen's University in Canada and an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.