Stephen Squeri

{{Short description|CEO of American Express}}

{{Infobox person

| name = Stephen J. Squeri

| birth_place = Queens, New York City, United Stateshttps://manhattan.edu/news/archive/2021/12/stephen-squeri-donates-10-million-to-manhattan-college.php

| birth_date = {{birth year|1959}}

| other_names = Stephen Joseph Squeri, Stephen J. Squeri, Steve Squeri

| nationality = American

| education = Monsignor McClancy High School

| alma_mater = Manhattan University (BS, MBA){{Citation|title=American Express Making Progress On Key Initiatives, Says CEO Stephen Squeri|date=12 June 2019 |publisher=Chief Executive |url=https://chiefexecutive.net/american-express-making-progress-on-key-initiatives-says-ceo-stephen-squeri/ }}

| occupation = Business executive

| years_active = 1980s-present

| organization = American Express

| title = Chairman and CEO

| term = 2018-present

| predecessor = Kenneth Chenault

| boards = American Express, Manhattan University, Monsignor McClancy Memorial High School

}}

Stephen J. Squeri (born 1959) is an American business executive. He is chairman and CEO of American Express. Squeri first joined American Express in 1985, becoming chief information officer in 2005 and vice chairman in 2015,{{cite web |last=Moyer |first=Liz |date=October 18, 2017 |title=American Express CEO Ken Chenault to leave after 17-year run |url=https://www.cnbc.com/amp/2017/10/18/american-express-ceo-ken-chenault-to-leave-be-replaced-by-stephen-squeri.html |work=CNBC}} along with other upper management roles.{{cite web |last=Witkowski |first=Wallace |date=October 18, 2017 |title=AmEx's Stephen Squeri to succeed Chenault as CEO, chairman |url=https://www.marketwatch.com/amp/story/guid/64AB6CE7-F219-4497-A33C-569C0C39AA4B |work=MarketWatch}}

Squeri is currently chairman of the Manhattan University board of trustees,https://catalog.manhattan.edu/undergraduate/themanhattancollegecorporation/ a board member at the Partnership for New York City, on the board of trustees of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and The Valerie Fund, on the board of governors of Monsignor McClancy Memorial High School, and a member of the Business Roundtable, the American Society of Corporate Executives, and The Business Council, among other roles. TIME named him one of the 100 Most Influential People of 2025.

Early life and education

Stephen "Steve" Joseph Squeri{{cite web | url=https://www.bloomberg.com/profile/person/7394026 | title=Steve Squeri, American Express Co: Profile and Biography | website=Bloomberg News }} was born in 1959{{cite news |date=2017-10-18 |title=American Express C.E.O. Ken Chenault to Step Down |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/18/business/american-express-chenault-squeri.html |access-date=2021-02-12 |work=New York Times}} in New York City.https://www.barrons.com/articles/american-express-ceo-says-the-business-is-firing-on-all-cylinders-fe875f3d He is the grandchild of Italian and Irish immigrants. His father worked as an accountant in New York for companies such as Colgate, CBS, and Bloomingdale's.https://www.ft.com/content/f1518d40-b065-44a6-ada2-7ee4a074d839 Squeri grew up in Astoria, Queens, graduating from Monsignor McClancy High School in East Elmhurst in 1977.{{cite web | url=https://www.landtekgroup.com/squeri-throws-out-first-pitch-at-mcclancy/ | title=Squeri throws out first pitch at McClancy | date=7 April 2022 }} Squeri subsequently attended Manhattan College in the Bronx, graduating with a bachelor of science in 1981 and an MBA in 1986.{{cite web| url=https://manhattan.edu/news/archive/2016/12/de-la-salle-dinner-honors-stephen-squeri.php |title=Annual De La Salle Medal Dinner Honors Amex Vice Chairman Stephen J. Squeri '81, '86|date=7 December 2016 | access-date=February 28, 2018}}

Career

Beginning in 1981, Squeri spent four years as a management consultant at Arthur Andersen.

Squeri joined American Express in 1985 as a manager in the Travelers Cheque Group and became an American Express vice president in 1990.{{cite news | url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-10-19/amex-picks-squeri-32-year-insider-to-remake-credit-card-giant | title=AmEx Picks Squeri, 32-Year Insider, to Remake Credit-Card Giant | newspaper=Bloomberg | date=19 October 2017 }} From 2000 to 2002 he served as president of the Establishment Services group in the United States and Canada, and from 2002 to 2005 he was president of the Global Commercial Card division. In 2005, he began serving as chief information officer of American Express.{{cite news |title=American Express Co (AXP) Chairman and CEO Stephen J Squeri Sold $9.4 million of Shares |url=https://finance.yahoo.com/news/american-express-co-axp-chairman-211501700.html |work=finance.yahoo.com}} He held the role until October 2009, during which time he also led Corporate Development, overseeing mergers and acquisitions.

In 2009, he was named group president of Global Services. He then served as American Express' group president of Global Corporate Services until 2015. He became vice chairman of American Express in July 2015, and also began leading the business-to-business group in October 2015. According to Forbes, the American Express board of directors began considering Squeri to be CEO in 2015.{{cite web | url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/laurengensler/2017/10/18/american-express-ceo-kenneth-chenault-is-retiring/ | title=American Express CEO Kenneth Chenault is Retiring After a 16-Year Run | website=Forbes }}

Squeri became chairman and CEO of American Express on February 1, 2018, having been appointed by the board of directors to succeed Kenneth Chenault.{{Cite news |last=Cowley |first=Stacy |date=2017-10-18 |title=American Express C.E.O. Ken Chenault to Step Down |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/18/business/american-express-chenault-squeri.html |access-date=2018-07-31 |work=The New York Times |language=en}} In 2023, Squeri's total compensation at American Express was $35.6 million, representing a CEO-to-median worker pay ratio of 677-to-1.{{Cite web |date=2024-06-07 |title=Equilar 100: CEO Pay at the Largest Companies by Revenue |url=https://www.equilar.com/reports/111-table-equilar-new-york-times-top-100-highest-paid-ceos-2024.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240815195403/https://www.equilar.com/reports/111-table-equilar-new-york-times-top-100-highest-paid-ceos-2024.html |archive-date=2024-08-15 |access-date=2024-08-31 |website=Equilar |language=en}} In April 2025, TIME named him one of the 100 Most Influential People of 2025.[https://time.com/collections/100-most-influential-people-2025/7273817/stephen-j-squeri/ Time]

Boards and committees

After joining the board of trustees at Manhattan University in 2013, he was named chair in 2023. He is also on the board of the Partnership for New York City,{{cite web | url=https://pfnyc.org/board-of-directors/ | title=Board of Directors }} on the board of governors of Monsignor McClancy Memorial High School,{{cite web | url=https://msgrmcclancy.org/stephen-squeri-77/ | title=Stephen Squeri '77 - MSGR McClancy Memorial High School | date=January 2009 }} and on the board of trustees of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and The Valerie Fund.

He is a member of the Business Roundtable, where he is chair of the corporate governance committee.{{cite web | url=https://ir.americanexpress.com/governance-and-corporate-responsibility/executive-committee-and-directors/person-details/default.aspx?ItemId=83cfacb0-90b4-414c-823b-222f743ca112 | title=American Express Company - Executive Committee & Directors }} He is also a member of The Business Council, the American Society of Corporate Executives,{{Citation |date=March 2023 |title=Stephen J. Squeri '81, '86 (MBA) Appointed Chair of Manhattan College's Board of Trustees |publisher=Manhattan College |url=https://manhattan.edu/news/archive/2023/03/squeri-chair.php }} and the New York Jobs CEO Council.{{cite web | url=https://nyjobsceocouncil.org/who-we-are/ | title=Who We Are }}

Squeri previously served on the boards of The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America, NY Downtown Hospital, the Columbus Citizens Foundation, and J.Crew,{{cite web | url=https://paymentsleadershipcouncil.org/council/stephen-j-squeri/ | title=Stephen J. Squeri }} the latter of which he joined in 2010.{{cite web | url=https://www.the-spin-off.com/news/stories/J.CREW-APPOINTS-AMEXS-STEPHEN-SQUERI-TO-BOARD-2976 | title=Stories: J.CREW APPOINTS AMex's STEPHEN SQUERI TO BOARD }}

See also

References

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