Jeffrey J. Brown replaced Michael A. Carpenter as chief executive of Ally Financial Inc., effective yesterday. Carpenter, who joined Ally in 2009, retired from the CEO post and from the company’s board, according to a company press release.
Franklin “Fritz” Hobbs, Ally’s chairman, will work closely with Brown on all areas of the business, the company said.
“Jeff Brown is an extraordinarily talented executive with deep financial and operational experience and a strong vision of how to take Ally forward into the future,” Hobbs said. “Jeff joined the company in 2009 as corporate treasurer. In 2011, he became executive vice president of finance and corporate planning, where he oversaw the company’s finance, treasury, and corporate strategy activities. And in March 2014, he was named CEO of Ally’s Dealer Financial Services business. The breadth of experience Jeff has gained during these transformational years at Ally has prepared him fully to take on leadership of the company as it enters its next chapter.”
Hobbs also credited Carpenter on his role in rebranding Ally, after joining the company “at an especially difficult and pivotal time.” During his time at Ally, Carpenter successfully completed the company’s initial public offering in 2014, and positioned the company to exit from the Troubled Asset Relief Program this past December, which the company originally entered in 2008.
“Mike stepped in when we needed him most,” Hobbs said in the release. “Ally is a stronger and more focused financial services company today because of him, and it has a great future thanks to his tireless leadership over the past five years.”
Last week, Ally Financial Inc. reported $41 billion in auto originations for 2014, $9 billion of which were originated in 4Q.