Goldman Sachs & Co. general partner and managing director John C. Kleinert will retire at the end of the year, the firm said Friday.
Kleinert, who had been head of trading, sales, and underwriting since 1993, is leaving the firm to begin a joint business venture with his brother, according to an internal memo distributed at the firm. Once retired, Kleinert will become a limited partner, the memo said.
Kleinert joined Goldman Sachs in 1982 as a municipal bond trader, rising to general partner in 1994. In 1996, he was made a managing director.
According to a spokesperson, Goldman Sachs has no immediate plans to fill Kleinert's vacancy. Michael McCarthy, general partner in charge of municipal finance, and A.J. Tulp, vice president and manager of the trading desk will both assume some of Kleinert's responsibilities, the spokesperson said.
Separately, there has been speculation that John Blondel Jr., a Goldman vice president in investment banking, has left municipal finance for corporate finance within the firm. However, officials at Goldman could not be reached by press time.
Kleinert's retirement comes on the heels of a leadership reshuffle in Goldman's municipal finance department last month, which has been aimed at integrating both the tax and tax-exempt areas, according to officials at the firm. Connie Duckworth, the regional manager of fixed-income in Chicago, and managing director Ann Kaplan, were promoted to "co-chief operating officers" in October. Duckworth is expected to relocate to New York from Chicago this month.
Additionally, Goldman's public finance group last month promoted both Barbara Basser-Bigio and George Butcher III to managing director from vice president, respectively.
Goldman had reshuffled its public finance department once before in February, moving Mark B. Florian, a vice president and manager from municipal to corporate finance. Florian was replaced by Bo Daniels in Chicago, the firm said.
