E*TRADE Financial Corporation has appointed Corporate Controller Brent Simonich as Chief Risk Officer after Paul Brandow advised the Company of his decision to retire, following over a decade of service to the firm. The appointment of Simonich is effective immediately, while Brandow has agreed to serve in an advisory capacity throughout the transition.
“We are extremely fortunate to have such a proven and capable leader as Brent on our bench, who will ably take the charge,” says Mike Pizzi, Chief Executive Officer of E*TRADE Financial. “Brent is a tried and true E*TRADE stalwart with deep knowledge of our industry, our Company, and our risks and controls. His diligence, integrity, and steadfast eye for detail will be tremendous assets as he leads our risk function into the future.”
An E*TRADE veteran, Simonich joined the Company in 1999. He has served E*TRADE in several leadership positions, most recently as Corporate Controller, Principal Accounting Officer, and CFO of E*TRADE Securities. Mr. Simonich has experience in finance and risk and controls functions including risk management, accounting, financial reporting, vendor oversight, due diligence and acquisitions, and real estate and physical security. Prior to E*TRADE he served as a Certified Public Accountant with Seiler LLP where his focus was in audit and tax. He holds Series 27 and 99 designations, and earned his BS in Business from California Polytechnic State University. Mr. Simonich assumes the role from previous CRO Paul Brandow, who is retiring after a career of over 45 years in financial services, including more than 10 years at E*TRADE.
“We are tremendously grateful to have had Paul serve our firm for as long as he has,” says Pizzi. “He has been an incredible asset in building out a fulsome risk function that is best in class, which is a result of Paul’s steady hand in guiding its maturation. His influence will be felt throughout our organisation beyond risk, as he is a deeply respected source of insight for the entire firm. We wish him the best in his much-deserved retirement, and are grateful for his many contributions.”
