OppenheimerFunds Announces New Leadership Team to Drive Next Phase of Growth

NEW YORK, Dec. 16, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- OppenheimerFunds (OFI) announced today that Arthur P. Steinmetz will be appointed Chief Executive Officer effective July 1, 2014.  At that time, Mr. Steinmetz will replace William F. Glavin, Jr., who will remain Chairman of OppenheimerFunds.

"Bill Glavin joined OppenheimerFunds during the depths of the financial crisis to guide OppenheimerFunds through a very challenging period for the company and the industry in general," said Mr. Steinmetz.  "Bill's immeasurable contributions to the firm's success during this time, and the impact of his leadership in steering the company on a path of sustainable growth, cannot be overstated.  I look forward to guiding the company on its next phase of growth. On a personal note, I would like to thank Bill for his guidance and mentorship over the past five years, which I will continue to appreciate as he remains Chairman."

As part of this transition, effective January 1, 2014, Krishna Memani, Chief Investment Officer, Fixed Income, will replace Mr. Steinmetz as Chief Investment Officer of OppenheimerFunds. In transitioning to his new role, Mr. Steinmetz will assume direct management of Investments, Distribution and Marketing, the principal drivers of the firm's growth strategy.

Effective January 1, 2014, John McDonough, Director of National Sales, will be promoted to the role of Head of Distribution. He will replace Philipp Hensler, who will pursue another executive position at a global financial services organization. 

Krishna Memani, John McDonough, and Martha (Marty) Willis, Chief Marketing Officer, will report directly to Mr. Steinmetz.  Mr. Memani's Fixed Income investment team will continue reporting to him.  George Evans, Chief Investment Officer, Equities, and Mark Hamilton, Chief Investment Officer, Asset Allocation, and their investment teams will also report to Mr. Memani.

"Art Steinmetz is a proven leader and passionate steward of the four beliefs that lie at the heart of the firm's investment culture, namely that active management can deliver better outcomes, independent investment boutiques lead to better ideas, a global perspective is critical, and knowing the difference between risk and risky is tantamount to investment success," said Mr. Glavin.  "Art has been one of the most successful and respected investment managers in the industry for more than 27 years, and I believe it is important that an investor lead this company at this point in its evolution.  We have developed a strategy that will accelerate our growth, and Art and the leadership team are well positioned to lead this change.  I look forward to working with Art and the leadership team at this exciting time."

Mr. Glavin continued, "Further, I want to thank Philipp Hensler for his great vision and unbridled enthusiasm in motivating our distribution organization to embrace new ways of thinking and new technologies, and for expanding our reach into the institutional and international markets.  Under Philipp's leadership, our distribution team has had a record year.  I know Philipp is eager for a new challenge, and that he will be a success in his next leadership position."

About OppenheimerFunds, Inc.

OppenheimerFunds, Inc. (OFI) is one of the largest and most reputable investment management firms in the country. Since the original Oppenheimer fund was first offered to the public in 1959, OFI has demonstrated it is a high conviction asset manager with a history of providing innovative investment strategies to its investors. OFI and its subsidiaries offer a broad array of products and services to individuals, institutional investors and corporations worldwide. OFI provides advisory services to the Oppenheimer mutual funds, and OFI Global Asset Management provides services to institutional clients. OFI, including its subsidiaries, managed more than $222 billion in assets for over 12 million shareholder accounts, including sub-accounts, as of September 30, 2013.

These views represent the opinions of OppenheimerFunds, Inc. and are not intended as investment advice or to predict or depict performance of any investment. These views are subject to change based on subsequent developments.

Shares of mutual funds are not deposits or obligations of any bank, are not guaranteed by any bank, are not insured by the FDIC or any other agency, and involve investment risks, including the possible loss of the principal amount invested.

Before investing in any of the Oppenheimer funds, investors should carefully consider a fund's investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses. Fund prospectuses and summary prospectuses contain this and other information about the funds, and may be obtained by asking your financial advisor, visiting oppenheimerfunds.com, or calling 1.800.525.7048. Read prospectuses and summary prospectuses carefully before investing.

Oppenheimer funds are distributed by OppenheimerFunds Distributor, Inc. Two World Financial Center, 225 Liberty Street, New York, NY, 10281

© 2013 OppenheimerFunds Distributor, Inc.  All Rights Reserved.

Arthur Steinmetz Bio

At various times during his tenure at OppenheimerFunds, Mr. Steinmetz headed the firm's Government Bond team, High Yield team and most recently, the International Debt team.  He is widely credited with helping to pioneer multi-sector bond investing, a now common approach that combines high yield corporate bonds, U.S. Government bonds and foreign fixed income securities in a diversified portfolio.

Mr. Steinmetz received an M.B.A. in finance from Columbia University and a B.A. in Russian language and Slavic studies from Denison University, where he was also a member of Phi Beta Kappa. He is a David Rockefeller Fellow at the Partnership for New York City and also served in the United States Air Force.

Krishna Memani Bio

Krishna Memani heads the Investment Grade Fixed Income team at OppenheimerFunds, with responsibility for the portfolio management of its full suite of investment grade strategies. Prior to joining the firm in 2009, Mr. Memani was a managing director and head of the U.S. and European Credit Analyst Team at Deutsche Bank.  Before that, he was the chief credit strategist at Credit Suisse.  Prior to that he served as a managing director and senior portfolio manager at Putnam Investments where he was instrumental in implementing a new investment process that led to strong relative performance.

Mr. Memani received a Bachelor of Engineering from the Birla Institute of Technology and Science, an M.A. in economics with a focus on econometrics from the University of Florida and an M.B.A. in finance from the University of Florida.

John McDonough Bio

John McDonough was most recently the Director of National Sales of OppenheimerFunds Distributor, Inc. (OFDI), overseeing all facets of external and internal distribution, distribution training, business reporting and analysis, expense management, and OFDI compliance. Mr. McDonough joined the firm in 1993 as a Product Specialist and was subsequently promoted to various internal and regional wholesaler roles. In 1998, he moved to manage the Washington, D.C. region; and in 2004, became the Sub-Advisory National Sales Manager.  In January 2007, Mr. McDonough was promoted to National Sales Director and became President of OFDI in March 2010.

Mr. McDonough holds a B.A. in American Studies from the University of Richmond and is a graduate of the International Business Management Executive Program at Georgetown University. 

SOURCE OppenheimerFunds, Inc.