David M. Solomon, Chairman and CEO of Goldman Sachs, speaks during the Milken Institute’s 22nd annual Global Conference in Beverly Hills, April 29, 2019
Mike Blake | Reuters
Goldman Sachs is beefing up its technology team with a top Amazon cloud executive.
The New York investment bank announced on Thursday it would hire Marco Argenti as partner and co-chief information officer, according to an internal Goldman Sachs memo seen by CNBC. Argenti was the vice president of technology at Amazon Web Services, known as AWS, for six years. Goldman is also hiring Atte Lahtiranta, who was chief technology officer at Verizon’s media group, as a partner and chief technology officer.
“Technology will only continue to shape markets, and digital platforms that seamlessly integrate execution, analytics and content will increasingly define how our clients choose to transact,” Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon said in an internal memo.
Argenti will succeed Elisha Wiesel, the firm’s co-chief information officer, who according to the memo is stepping down after 25 years. This follows another exit by Goldman Sachs veteran Marty Chavez, global co-head of the securities division, whose retirement was announced in a company memo earlier in September.
The Information first reported the executive changes.
The new hires will work closely with co-CIO George Lee, in advancing its “engineering strategy” to “deliver differentiated and innovative technology and data solutions,” according to the memo.
These new hires come as Goldman and other investment banks increase spending on technology and shift to cloud computing. Goldman is already an AWS customer.
The bank is also shifting to more consumer-focused areas, such as digital banking and lending, through its Marcus arm. The 150-year old investment bank partnered with tech giant Apple this year to launch its first credit card.
— CNBC’s Hugh Son contributed reporting.