Former FDIC Chairman Bill Seidman Dead at 88

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By Noel Sheppard (Bio | Archive)
May 13, 2009 - 15:32 ET
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A truly great American, former FDIC chairman Bill Seidman, died Wednesday at the age of 88.

CNBC.com reported moments ago:

Mr. Seidman was born April, 29, 1921, in Grand Rapids, Mich. He received his undergraduate degree from Dartmouth College, his LLB from Harvard University and his MBA from the University of Michigan's Ross School of Business.

During World War II, Mr. Seidman served in the U.S. Navy as a communications officer on a destroyer and received the Bronze Star while serving in the invasion of the Philippines, Iwo Jima, and Okinawa.

He later served in the White House as President Gerald R. Ford's Assistant for Economic Affairs from 1974 to 1977. He also served with President Ronald Reagan as co-chair of the White House Conference on Productivity in 1983 and 1984.

From 1985 to 1991, Mr. Seidman served as the fourteenth chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. Under President George H.W. Bush, Seidman was tapped to head up the newly created federal agency called the Resolution Trust Corp. (RTC), which landed the mammoth task of cleaning up the S&L mess.

On a personal note, I have always had a great fondness for Bill. This was a truly brilliant man when it came to economics and finance; the business community and America have lost a great one today.

Rest in Peace, Bill.

CNBC.com has created a marvelous tribute to their former colleague:

—Noel Sheppard is the Associate Editor of NewsBusters. Follow him at Facebook and Twitter.


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A Great Loss

May 13, 2009 - 17:12 ET by Sweetness

Mr. Seidman was a clear voice of common sense and valuable perspective.  As a professional trader, I know all too well that most of what you hear on CNBC is garbage, but he was one of the few deserving of respect.

I always enjoyed Seidman's

May 13, 2009 - 18:58 ET by jdhawk

I always enjoyed Seidman's take on the business events of the day.  He was a Milton Friedman economist, a conservative.  He will be missed by those that sought his wise counsel in the business community. 

Farewell . . . 

 

Bill Seidman

May 13, 2009 - 17:14 ET by kiwikit

has been a favorite of mine for years.  He was always the voice of reason in everything financial and it was clear that he was disgusted by what the current administration was doing 'fixing' the banking system.  His leadership during the S&L crisis, on the other hand, resulted in a profit for the government.  Where is today's leader equal to him?  

The idiot press will never

May 13, 2009 - 20:18 ET by Edhenry

The idiot press will never understand what he did to keep US out of ditch with S&L crisis. However, how he did it would not fly in this environment (he did it expediently, lawfully and without political motive - which couldn't happen today).

May God Bless Mr S.