Morgan Stanley playing offense,
but no TV-Wall Street bidding war
in Gary Kaminsky hiring
Posted: Friday, March 15, 2013
The departure of CNBC Capital Markets Editor Gary Kaminsky to Morgan Stanley apparently did not provoke a unique television-vs.-Wall Street bidding war, according to various sources.
Kaminsky's 17-month tenure as the outspoken capital markets editor, in which he delivered commentary during "Squawk on the Street" from 11 a.m. to noon Eastern, occasionally opined on other CNBC programs and conducted on-location interviews with prominent investors, ended this week with his resignation, accepted by CNBC.
It is presumed, having decided to re-enter the financial world as Morgan Stanley vice chairman of wealth management, that Kaminsky did not seek an elevated CNBC position or counteroffer, and CNBC did not attempt one.
Fox Business' Charles Gasparino broke the news on Monday that Kaminsky was to be offered the position and reported, "Kaminsky has been weighing a move back to Wall Street for some time, and has fielded offers from large money management firms and hedge funds, according to people with knowledge of the matter. He has been in discussions with Morgan Stanley for about 6 weeks, these people say."
Kaminsky's departure is quite possibly CNBC's most significant personnel change in many years — for its Wall Street ramifications.
The slightly unconventional hire, announced by Greg Fleming, suggests Morgan Stanley is aggressively recruiting talent to reignite the firm as it and the rest of Wall Street's big banks still contend with regulators, bailout fatigue, negative IPO and trading-loss headlines, and remnants of the 2008 financial crisis.
Kaminsky in fact had offered pointed observations about Morgan Stanley CEO James Gorman's interview with Maria Bartiromo after the Facebook IPO controversy in May 2012. (Partial transcript of Kaminsky's commentary is on this site's home page.)
Citigroup replaced CEO Vikram Pandit in October, an earlier indication that banks have become comfortable charting a fresh post-2008 course. Citi shares, amid an overall bank-stock and market rally, are up roughly 30% since Pandit's ouster.
Morgan Stanley shares are down slightly since Monday but have held steady in the low $20s since mid-January.
Whether CNBC will appoint a new capital markets editor is unknown. The channel's most prominent departure recently was Erin Burnett, who hosted afternoon's "Street Signs" and left to host an evening program on CNN. Previously, popular anchor Ron Insana made headlines in leaving CNBC in 2006 to launch a hedge fund.
Gasparino, an aggressive, polarizing Wall Street reporter, spent 4 years at CNBC and then left for Fox Business in February 2010.
Kaminsky, unlike Insana, was a well-known money manager before landing on television full time, having left Neuberger Berman before the downfall of Lehman Brothers. A longtime CNBC guest, he debuted as co-host of "The Strategy Session," essentially CNBC's last notably new daytime program that featured host David Faber, in June 2010. That show was canceled in October 2011.
There was surprise in some quarters at CNBC this week. It is not known whether other CNBC on-air personalities — those with a money-management background or not — are entertaining or pursuing Wall Street moves similar to Kaminsky or Insana. Gasparino tweeted that there was "grapevine chatter" at CNBC about Kaminsky bringing other staffers with him to Morgan Stanley, but this site is aware of no other departures.