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October 17, 2000
First Union Chairman Edward E. Crutchfield Announces Retirement; G. Kennedy Thompson Elected to Succeed Crutchfield
CHARLOTTE -- First Union Corporation (NYSE: FTU) announced today that Edward E. Crutchfield has made the decision to retire as chairman and a member of the board of directors on March 1, 2001. The company's board of directors has unanimously elected G. Kennedy Thompson to succeed Crutchfield as chairman upon his retirement. Thompson will continue as chief executive officer. The company will not name a president at this time.
Crutchfield said, "I am grateful for more than 35 years of working together with the outstanding people of First Union. I am also indeed grateful for my return to good health. First Union has already made significant progress in adapting its new business model, and I have enormous confidence that Ken Thompson and his management team will continue that momentum."
"Ed Crutchfield has been an outstanding leader and the singular force that has shaped First Union. The board of directors and the entire First Union community wish Ed and his family the very best," said Thompson.
Crutchfield, 59, joined First Union in 1965 with a B.A. in economics from Davidson College and an M.B.A. from the Wharton School of Finance. He was named president of the company in 1973. He was elected chief executive officer in 1984 and chairman in 1985. Crutchfield stepped down as CEO in April of this year to begin treatment for a curable form of lymphoma cancer, from which he is in full remission.
Thompson, 49, joined First Union in 1976 with a B.A. from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, where he was a Morehead Scholar. He received an M.B.A from Wake Forest University. He was named president in 1999. Previously, Thompson was vice chairman of the corporation and head of Global Capital Markets; president, First Union-Florida; senior vice president and head of Human Resources; president, First Union-Georgia; manager of the New York Loan Production Office; manager of the Middle Market Department; and head of the Southeast Division.
First Union, with $258 billion in assets and stockholders' equity of $14 billion at June 30, 2000, is a leading provider of financial services to 15 million retail and corporate customers throughout the East Coast and the nation. The company operates full-service banking offices in 12 East Coast states and Washington, D.C., and full-service brokerage offices in 44 states and international offices worldwide. Online banking products and services can be accessed through www.firstunion.com.
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