Simon Thompson (businessman)
Simon Thompson | |
---|---|
Born | 16 June 1959 Bramhall, U.K. | (age 65)
Education | Manchester Grammar School |
Alma mater | University College, Oxford |
Occupation | Investment banker |
Board member of | Rio Tinto Group |
Spouse | Fiona Graham-Bryce |
Parent(s) | Robert Thompson Patricia Thompson |
Simon Thompson (born 16 June 1959) is a British investment banker and business executive. He is the current chairman of the Rio Tinto Group and was the former chairman of: Tarmac Group, and Tullow Oil. He serves as the chairman of 3i, a private equity and venture capital firm.
Early life
Simon Thompson was born on 16 June 1959 in Bramhall, U.K.[1] He was educated at the Manchester Grammar School.[1] He graduated from University College, Oxford, where he earned a bachelor's degree in geology in 1985.[1][2]
Career
Thompson worked for Lloyds Bank from 1981 to 1985, N M Rothschild & Sons from 1985 to 1994, and S. G. Warburg & Co. from 1994 to 1995.[1] He joined Minorco S.A., a mining company, in 1995, first as its head of finance until 1997, and as the head of its Brazilian subsidiary until 1999,[2] when it merged with Anglo American plc.[1] He subsequently worked for Anglo American, serving as the chief executive officer of its Anglo Base Metals Division from 2001 to 2007.[2]
Thompson was the chairman of the Tarmac Group from 2005 to 2007.[1][3] He was the chairman of Tullow Oil from 2012 to 2015,[1][3] when he succeeded Adrian Montague as the chairman of 3i in 2015.[4]
Thompson served on the boards of directors of the Newmont Mining Corporation from 2008 to 2014.[5] He also served on the board of Amec Foster Wheeler from 2009 to 2015, and Sandvik AB from 2014 2015.[4][5] He serves as the chairman of the Rio Tinto Group.[4][5]
In 2020, under Thompson's chairmanship, Rio Tinto destroyed a 46,000-year-old significant Aboriginal site at Juukan Gorge in Western Australia.[6]
Personal life
Thompson married Fiona Graham-Bryce in 1986.[1] He is a member of the Athenæum Club and the Alpine Club,[1] and he is the author of two books about climbing and hiking.
Works
- Thompson, Simon (2010). Unjustifiable Risk? The Story of British Climbing. Milnthorpe, Cumbria, U.K.: Cicerone Press. ISBN 9781849656993. OCLC 893659566.
- Thompson, Simon (2013). A Long Walk with Lord Conway: An Exploration of the Alps and an English Adventurer. Oxford, U.K.: Signal Books. ISBN 9781908493804. OCLC 871584256.
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i "THOMPSON, Simon Robert". Who's Who 2017. Oxford University Press. Retrieved July 19, 2017.
- ^ a b c "Newmont Mining Corp (NEM:New York): Simon R. Thompson MA (Oxon)". Bloomberg. Retrieved July 19, 2017.
- ^ a b Cotterill, Joseph (April 13, 2015). "3i appoints Simon Thompson as chairman". Financial Times. Retrieved July 19, 2017.
- ^ a b c Wallace, Tim (April 14, 2015). "Montague quits as 3i chair to focus on Aviva". City A.M. Retrieved July 19, 2017.
- ^ a b c "Board of directors: Simon Thompson". Rio Tinto. Retrieved September 11, 2020.
- ^ Ker, Peter (September 8, 2020). "Rio Tinto set to escalate its response to Juukan Gorge destruction". City A.M. Retrieved September 9, 2020.