- Major figures from across Wall Street firms have spoken out about the violence that erupted at the US Capitol Wednesday.
- CEOs of BlackRock, Goldman Sachs, Wells Fargo, and the Bank of America condemned the pro-Trump rioters, and called for a peaceful transition to power to President-elect Joe Biden.
- BlackRock CEO Larry Fink called the attempted coup an “assault” on America and its people.
- Bill Ackman, founder and CEO of Pershing Square Capital Management, said President Donald Trump should “resign and apologize to all Americans.”
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CEOs of US finance giants, including Goldman Sachs and the Bank of America, on Wednesday condemned the pro-Trump mob who stormed the US Capitol and called for national unity.
They joined other CEOs of major businesses, including Apple, Microsoft, and Google, in describing the riots – during which four people died – as an attack on American values. They also urged a peaceful transition to President-elect Joe Biden, whose election victory was certified by Congress on Thursday morning.
President Donald Trump, who had asked the rioters to go home but also said they were “very special,” on Thursday promised an “orderly transition” of power.
Larry Fink, CEO of investment giant BlackRock, called the violence “an assault on our nation, our democracy, and the will of the American people,” per Bloomberg.
“The peaceful transfer of power is the foundation of our democracy,” Fink said in a statement. “We are who we are as a nation because of our democratic institutions and process.”
Bill Ackman, founder and CEO of Pershing Square Capital Management, tweeted that it was time for Trump to "resign and apologize to all Americans."
—Bill Ackman (@BillAckman) January 7, 2021
David M. Soloman, chairman and CEO of Goldman Sachs, said the US had lost the "reservoir of goodwill" its democracy had built up around the world.
"For years, our democracy has built a reservoir of goodwill around the world that brings important benefits for our citizens," he said in a post on LinkedIn. "Recently, we have squandered that goodwill at an alarming pace, and today's attack on the U.S. Capitol does further damage.
"It's time for all Americans to come together and move forward with a peaceful transition of power. We have to begin reinvesting in our democracy and rebuilding the institutions that have made America an exceptional nation."
Wells Fargo CEO Charlie Scharf also called for an end to the violence in Washington.
"We must embark on the peaceful transition of power to President-elect Biden, a hallmark of our republic," he said in a statement, per Bloomberg. He urged leaders to "come together to address the divisions in our society, ensure faith in our system and respect the electoral process."
Brian Moynihan, Bank of America's CEO, described the insurrection as "appalling" in a statement published Wednesday. He called on the US to "move forward together peacefully, respectfully and with a singular, shared focus on our American ideals."
—Bank of America News (@BofA_News) January 6, 2021
Tim Ryan, CEO of the accounting firm PwC, was in the middle of a webcast meeting with staff when the incident happened, the New York Times reported Wednesday.
He told staff: "Our Capitol building has been stormed by protesters that are resisting our democratic process and are threatening violence."
"I think it is safe to say that this is a surreal day that will go down in our country's history, and it is devastating to watch these events unfold right before our eyes," he said, the company told The Times.