CHICAGO Thomas C. Theobald, former chairman and chief executive of Continental Bank Corp., surprised some observers this week by announcing that he will become a partner and investor in a new equity fund.
The arrangement with William Blair & Co., announced Tuesday afternoon, came just a few days after Continental's Aug. 31 sale to BankAmerica Corp., San Francisco, in a cash-andstock transaction valued at roughly $2 billion.
Some of Mr. Theobald's former colleagues expressed surprise that the executive would assume responsibility for a fund specializing in leveraged buyouts and venture capital investments - intensive activities Mr. Theobald formerly supervised rather than performed.
"Clearly, Tom was not going to ride off into the sunset, but this is a higher level of involvement than I anticipated," said one longtime associate. According to documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Mr. Theobald's gallent parachute included severance benefits worth $4.15 million and gains on certain stock options.
