The merger of Chemical Banking Corp. and Chase Manhattan Corp. created a career-enhancing opportunity for Denis O'Leary, Chemical's chief information officer, but several senior other technology executives are left with their jobs up in the air.
O'Leary will retain his CIO role in the new institution. But no word was given what role would be assigned for his counterparts at Chase! - Craig Goldman, senior vice president and chef information officer, or his boss., Doug Williams executive vice president and head of corporate technology and operations.
A Chase spokeswoman said these and a host of other personnel related details will be worked out as the two banks combine their operations. And a Chemical spokeswoman said the executives running each business unit will need weeks - if not months - to sort through all the merger's details before they decide who will stay with the new bank and what their assignments will be.
Chase and Chemical have similar transaction processing units that manage, among other things, cash management and global custody. Chemical's unit, called Geoserve, will still be run by Richard Matteis, who has supervised the business since it was part of Manufacturers Hanover Corp. Chase's operation is called information and Technology Services (ITS), although it had been known as Infoserv until this year. The unit consists of two groups, Global Payment and Treasury Services (GPTS) and Global Securities Services (GSS).
GPTS handles cash management, foreign exchange payments and electronic funds transfers, and is run by Deborah Talbot. Vivian Eversole oversees GSS, which will include the global custody business being acquired from U.S. Trust. No word was available on the fate of Eversole or Talbot, who work for Chase vice chairman E. Michel Kruse, a position he will hold in the new bank.
While they competed head-to-head, Geoserve and ITS also have complementary strengths. Geoserve is particularly strong in securities processing, particularly for broker/dealer clearing and the processing of U.S. Treasury and agency debt in the overnight repo market. It also has a substantial domestic cash management business.
Chase, on the other hand, is very strong in global custody, international cash management and processing automated clearing house payments for its insurance industry customers, according to Diane Glossman, an analyst with Salomon Brothers.
Michael Urkowitz had run Infoserv until April, when he was reassigned to direct the integration of Chase's retail computer systems, an area in which the New York bank lagged behind several of its competitors. He'll stay in that role following the merger with Chemical.
Ultimately, the postmerger Chase will probably follow the pattern established fished by Chemical three years ago in its merger with Manufacturers, says Ladd WAY, an executive vice president with First Manhattan Consulting Group. There, executives examined each product line and the computer systems supporting them. Then they chose the system that made the best fit.
