Goldman Sachs taps former BofA executive Tom Montag for board -source

By Saeed Azhar and Manya Saini

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Goldman Sachs Group Inc plans to add former Bank of America executive Tom Montag to its board, a person familiar with the matter said on Monday, as Goldman's leadership faces challenges over its strategy.

The bank's board is gathering in India this week, a second source said. Montag, who has previously worked at Goldman Sachs, is currently CEO of Rubicon Carbon, a carbon-market venture backed by asset manager TPG.

He did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The planned appointment was first reported by Bloomberg News, which said that Montag is an ally of CEO David Solomon.

Goldman declined to comment.

Montag, described by his peers as a hard-charging executive, was formerly a partner at Goldman Sachs and jointly led its securities division until late 2007. He was at the bank for 22 years.

He joined Merrill Lynch in 2008, which was taken over by Bank of America shortly afterward during the throes of the financial crisis. Montag served as BofA's chief operating officer and president of its global banking and markets unit before leaving at the end of 2021.

Goldman's board meeting comes as cost cuts have accelerated at the Wall Street bank, which faces a dismal deals outlook and a challenging economy.

Solomon is under pressure after a failed foray into consumer banking, which triggered $3 billion in losses in nearly three years.

(Reporting by Saeed Azhar in New York and Manya Saini in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun Koyyur and Emelia Sithole-Matarise)