Hi °C | Lo °C THERE aren't many Goldman Sachs staff likely to receive much adulation these days but Jim O'Neill, who announced he planned to retire from the bank yesterday, is unquestionably one of them.
The economist was a heavyweight in financial circles but he hit the big time, and crossed over in to the public consciousness, through two specific deeds.
The more important one was unquestionably his 2001 call that Brazil, Russia, India and China would drive economic growth in the 21st Century. He christened the four countries the 'BRICs' and his call was spot-on in every way.
If that call made him a rock star in the financial world and made him known to the wider public, then his attempted takeover of Manchester United certainly gave him mainstream appeal.
He sat on the board of the club in 2004 and 2005 before the Glazer family took it private, but then re-emerged as part of a consortium known as the "Red Knights" that attempted to buy the club from the Glazers in 2010.
The bid ultimately failed but it turned Mr O'Neill into something of a cult hero in Manchester.
He remains popular among the club's fans to this day.
Mr O'Neill is retiring from his position as chairman of Goldman Sachs Asset Management but he is unlikely to be idle for long.
He is only 55 and people like him can name their price when it comes to consulting gigs and the like. One suspects this isn't the last we'll hear from 'Mr BRIC'.
Irish Independent
