James Wolfensohn

James Wolfensohn KBE AO (born December 1, 1933) was the ninth president of the World Bank Group.

Early life

Wolfensohn was born in Sydney, Australia. According to The World's Banker by Sebastian Mallaby, Wolfensohn was raised in Australia, the son of an unsuccessful Jewish businessman who left England for Australia during the Great Depression. He was captain of the Australian fencing team at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, and an Officer in the Royal Australian Air Force. He was educated at Sydney Boys High School, studied Arts and Law at the University of Sydney and in 1959 earned a Master of Business Administration degree Harvard Business School.

Business career

He worked for various banking institutions in Australia before being employed by Schroders, a London-based investment bank. He was a senior executive in the London office before becoming managing director of the bank's New York City office from 1970 to 1976. He later became a senior executive at Salomon Brothers.

In 1980, he became a naturalized citizen of the United States, after it was rumoured that he was a candidate to succeed Robert McNamara as President of the World Bank. After he was unsuccessful in this pursuit, he established his own investment firm, which was later bought by Bankers Trust.

Public service

Wolfensohn became President of the World Bank on July 1, 1995 after he was nominated by then President of the United States Bill Clinton. He was unanimously supported by the Bank's Board of Executive Directors to a second five-year term in 2000, becoming the third person to serve two terms in the position after Eugene R. Black and Robert McNamara. He visited over 120 countries around the world during his term as President. On January 3, 2005, he announced that he would not seek a third term as President. During his term, the Alfalfa Club named him as their nominee for President of the United States in 2000 as part of a long-standing tradition.NNDB.com (2006). Alfalfa Club. Retrieved May 21, 2006.

Upon leaving the Bank on May 31, 2005, Wolfensohn assumed the post of Special Envoy for Gaza Disengagement for the Quartet on the Middle East. United States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice appointed him to this position, in which he was to help coordinate Israel's planned withdrawal from the Gaza Strip and to spearhead reconstruction efforts as the Palestinians assume sovereignty over the area. Citing frustration with the stymied Road Map process and hostile negotiations with the Hamas-led Palestinian National Authority, he announced that he would not continue on past his original one-year commitment, and left the post on April 30, 2006.CNN.com (2006). Wolfensohn steps down as Gaza envoy. Retrieved May 21, 2006.

He is now working as a senior advisor to Citigroup.

Wolfensohn has attended meetings for the Bilderberg group, is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, and an honorary trustee of the Brookings Institution. He is currently the chairman of the board of the Institute for Advanced Study, chairman emeritus of Carnegie Hall (wehere he has performed on cello) and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts,

Personal life and honors

A friend of Jacqueline du Pré, he began cello studies with her at the age of 41, and continues to play, sometimes with his daughter, who is a professional pianist.

Wolfensohn has received numerous awards throughout his life, including an honorary knighthood of the Order of the British Empire in 1995 for his service to the arts, and becoming an honorary Officer of the Order of Australia.

References

External links

Biographies

Other

Testimony before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, June 30, 2005 (in pdf format)
Book reviews of The World's Banker give more information on Wolfensohn.
James Wolfensohn's Project Syndicate op/eds
10 years as Head of World Bank, an interview with Wolfensohn, from Russia's ITAR-TASS

1933 births | Living people | Naturalized citizens of the United States | Foreign-born American politicians | Presidents of the World Bank

James David Wolfensohn | James Wolfensohn | ג'יימס וולפנזון | James Wolfensohn

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