It was an unusual Wall Street formula.
Take the Los Angeles Dodgers. Add NBA Hall-of-Famer Magic Johnson. And stir in Guggenheim, one of the grand old names of American business.
Today the 2012 Dodgers takeover seems to encapsulate the growing trouble inside Guggenheim Partners, whose leader, Mark Walter, cut that winning side deal for himself and select colleagues.
Interviews with more than a dozen current and former employees and people close to the firm paint a portrait of a once-thriving partnership now riven by personal and professional rivalries.
No fewer than 60 bankers, traders and analysts have departed over the last two years. Guggenheim recently went so far as to offer some senior managers bonuses to stay on for at least a year amid frustration over money, management style and personnel.
Top executives aren’t just feuding over the CEO’s outside investments, according to the current and former employees. They’re upset about the direction of the firm, which lost value last year even as assets grew. They’re also at odds over the promotion, pushed by Walter, of Alexandra Court to oversee global institutional client relations despite her lack of Finra credentials for the post.
Meantime, Court is negotiating an exit, these people say. Some Guggenheim employees wonder how long Walter, 57, will remain CEO.
The conflict reached a boil in late July, when Scott Minerd, Guggenheim’s star money manager, confronted Walter in the firm’s Chicago office.
The flashpoint: Walter’s decision to promote the South African-born Court even though she lacked key securities accreditations, including a basic U.S. Series 7 license. Guggenheim fired almost two dozen workers in her unit when she took the job.
Unsettled Clients