Peter A. Cohen

Peter A. Cohen is the chairman and CEO of Andover National Corporation, a public holding company. He was formerly the Chairman and CEO Cowen Inc., also known as Cowen & Company.[2] Prior to his current role, Cohen founded Ramius Capital Management in 1994, a $13 billion investment firm, which he merged with Cowen Inc in 2009. Prior to this, Cohen was the chairman and chief executive officer of Shearson Lehman American Express from 1983 through 1991.[1][3]

Peter A. Cohen
Born1946/1947 (age 73–74)[1]
NationalityUnited States
EducationThe Ohio State University
OccupationBanker
Known forChairman and CEO of Cowen Inc.
Spouse(s)Brooke Goodman
Parent(s)Florence & Sidney B. Cohen

Early life and education

Cohen was born and raised on Long Island, New York. He is of Jewish descent.[4][5] Cohen graduated from Ohio State University in 1968 and received his MBA from Columbia Business School in 1969.

Career

Cohen began his career on Wall Street at Reynolds & Co., later part of Dean Witter Reynolds and in 1970, joined CBWL-Hayden Stone. In 1973, Cohen would take a position as assistant to the firm's chairman, Sanford I. Weill, the architect of a major consolidation of brokerage and investment banking firms in the 1960s and 1970s. Cohen would remain with the firm through its various mergers in the 1970s, including Shearson, Hammill & Co. and Loeb, Rhoades, Hornblower & Co.[6]

In 1978, Cohen left Shearson for one year to work for Edmond Safra at Republic New York Corporation and the Trade Development Bank before returning to Shearson in 1979. Shearson merged with American Express in 1981 at which time Cohen became president and chief operating officer and in 1983 chairman and chief executive officer. At age 36, Cohen was by far the youngest head of a major Wall Street firm.[3] In 1984, Cohen acquired Lehman Brothers Inc.

In 1988, Cohen was a key player in the leveraged buyout of RJR Nabisco. Cohen and Shearson Lehman supported the company's CEO F. Ross Johnson in a proposed $17 billion buyout.[7][8] Ultimately, Johnson and Cohen lost their bid for the company and RJR Nabisco was acquired by the private equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts.[9][10] Cohen was portrayed by Peter Riegert in the 1993 film Barbarians at the Gate depicting the RJR Nabisco buyout.[11]

In 1991, Cohen founded the securities and asset management businesses of Republic National Bank of New York. From November 1992 to May 1994, Cohen was vice chairman and a director of Republic New York.[12]

Personal life

Cohen has been married twice. His first marriage ended in divorce.[4] He is married to former flight attendant Brooke Goodman;[4][13] they have a daughter.[4]

References
  1. Williams, Monci Jo (May 23, 1988). "Brash New Mogul on Wall Street". Fortune (magazine) . Then you can appreciate the yearnings of Peter Cohen, 41, chairman of the Shearson Lehman Hutton brokerage firm
  2. "Cohen's Back, on a Smaller Stage". The Wall Street Journal. November 28, 2009.
  3. Vanities on The Bonfire: Peter Cohen. Time, February 12, 1990
  4. John Rossant (Mar 29, 1999). "The Reincarnation Of Peter Cohen". Bloomberg. But they were also fast friends who were linked by their shared Jewish background: DeBenedetti would talk to Cohen about how he had narrowly escaped the Nazis in World War II.
  5. Inside Philanthropy: "Peter A. Cohen" retrieved September 21, 2017
  6. "Cowen Group - Leadership". Cowen Group. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
  7. Nabisco Executives Offer $17 Billion for Company. New York Times, October 21, 1988
  8. Shearson Risks, Rewards on RJR Nabisco. New York Times, October 22, 1988
  9. RJR Nabisco Bidders Said to Talk. New York Times, October 26, 1988
  10. The Nabisco Battle's Key Moment. New York Times, December 2, 1988
  11. "Barbarians at the Gate". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved August 21, 2014.
  12. "Peter Cohen". Forbes. Retrieved August 21, 2014.
  13. "Hale, Hearty, and Virile". New York Magazine. December 22, 1997. p. 26.
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