In its latest move to woo the everyday consumer, Goldman Sachs (GS) has tapped Stephen Scherr to spearhead the company’s deposits and loans operations, while leading the bank’s nascent push into online banking, according to a Friday internal memo seen by Fortune.
Scherr, who encouraged the investment banking giant to grow its lending and asset management sectors in the wake of the financial crisis, is now CEO of Goldman Sachs Bank USA. He will remain Goldman Sach’s chief strategy officer, though his responsibilities for overseeing the bank’s Latin American business will now fall to Marc Nachmann, head of the Global Financing Group.
“In his new capacity, Stephen will lead the firm’s efforts to identify and implement new lending and deposit funding opportunities in ways that are accretive to the firm while leveraging the firm’s strength in technology and risk management,” Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein and President Gary Cohn wrote in the memo. “He will oversee the online lending platform being developed under the leadership of Harit Talwar, as well as our newly-acquired online deposit platform.”
Scherr’s appointment as GS Bank CEO is the most recent step in Goldman Sach’s endeavor to attract middle class consumers and modernize in an age when online banking is beginning to change to industry.
Goldman Sachs, known for banking largely to high-net worth individuals, recently opened up an online deposit platform, GS Bank, allowing any one with an existing bank account and a dollar to make deposits. Though its customer base is still small, lagging behind its competitors in the investment banking space: J.P. Morgan and Wells Fargo.
“We are focused on integrating the platform, ensuring its smooth functioning and delivering high levels of customer service,” Andrew Williams, a Goldman Sachs representative said in a statement.
The company’s online consumer lending platform is expected to debut in the second half of 2016.
As of now, Goldman Sachs has no plans to roll out credit card operations, Williams told Fortune.
Scherr replaces Esta Stecher, who will become the non-executive chair on Goldman’s board of directors.
