Scott Minerd, managing partner and global chief investment officer at Guggenheim Partners, died Wednesday of a heart attack. He was 63.
The firm announced his unexpected death in a news release Thursday.
"I have known Scott for over 30 years, and we were partners much of that time," said Mark Walter, CEO and founder of Guggenheim Partners, in the news release. "Scott was a key innovator and thought leader who was instrumental in building Guggenheim Investments into the global business it is today. He will be greatly missed by all. My deepest condolences are with his husband, family and loved ones."
Mr. Minerd's career in investing started in 1983 when he joined Merrill Lynch & Co. Inc.'s new fixed-income capital markets group started by former Treasury Secretary Donald Regan, cutting short his pursuit of an MBA at the University of Chicago. Five years later, he left to head fixed-income credit trading in Europe for Morgan Stanley and then joined Credit Suisse First Boston in 1994, heading up its North American fixed-income credit trading unit.
Mr. Minerd first met Guggenheim's Mr. Walter in a 1995 sales meeting when CSFB sought to represent Mr. Walter's employer, First Chicago NBD, in a debt issuance.
In the 2009 interview, Mr. Minerd said that in 1998, when Guggenheim was forming, he made a proposal to Mr. Walter of what he wanted to do.
"It gave me the opportunity to help shape the company. One of my frustrations on Wall Street was seeing things that were wrong or inefficient or not in the best interests of clients," Mr. Minerd said. "With Guggenheim, I saw the potential to build a world-class asset management firm. I recognized over time we could slowly extend to new products. We could build a foundation and opportunities would come when Guggenheim distinguished itself as world class."
Mr. Minerd became CIO of Guggenheim Partners, which now has more than $285 billion in assets under management, in 1999.
Mr. Minerd is survived by his husband, Eloy Mendez. Officials at Guggenheim Partners could not be immediately be reached regarding service information.
