Google Hires Morgan Stanley's Ruth Porat As Chief Financial Officer

Before becoming CFO of the investment bank Morgan Stanley, Porat was a banker for tech companies like Amazon, eBay, and Priceline.

Ruth Porat

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Another Wall Street veteran is leaving banking to become chief financial officer of a large tech company. Morgan Stanley's chief financial officer Ruth Porat will become the chief financial officer of Google, the company said today.

Porat, who has been CFO at Morgan Stanley since 2010, is a natural fit for a head finance job in Silicon Valley. In the 1990s, Porat worked with technology companies like Amazon to take them public and was then a senior merger and acquisitions banker. Google, of course, is already public, but is also a frequent buyer of technology companies like Nest, which it bought for over $3 billion, or Waze, which it bought for almost $1 billion.

The last banker to make the trip west was Anthony Noto, who transitioned from being Twitter's banker in charge of taking them public to the company's chief financial officer last year.

"We're tremendously fortunate to have found such a creative, experienced and operationally strong executive," Google chief executive officer Larry Page said in a statement.

Google previous CFO, Patrick Pichette, announced his resignation in March, saying in a long, personal post on Google+ that he wanted to spend more time with his family after seven years running Google's finances.

This is not the first time Porat has been considered for a higher profile gig — in 2013 she was considered for a senior role in the Treasury Department but ended up staying at Morgan Stanley. Porat will start at Google in May, the company said.

"I'm delighted to be returning to my California roots and joining Google," Porat said in a statement. "Growing up in Silicon Valley, during my time at Morgan Stanley and as a member of Stanford's Board, I've had the opportunity to experience first hand how tech companies can help people in their daily lives. I can't wait to roll up my sleeves and get started."

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