Peter G. Peterson, Chairman Emeritus and Cofounder, The Blackstone Group

Peter G. Peterson is chairman emeritus and cofounder of The Blackstone Group, a private investment banking firm established in 1985. He recently launched the Peter G. Peterson Foundation to increase public awareness of the nature and urgency of key economic challenges threatening America's future. He is the chairman emeritus of the Council on Foreign Relations and chairman of the Council on Foreign Relation's International Advisory Board. He is also founding chairman of the Peterson Institute for International Economics in Washington, D.C. and founding president of The Concord Coalition. Mr. Peterson was the cochair of The Conference Board Commission on Public Trust and Private Enterprise. He was also chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York from 2000 to 2004.

Prior to founding Blackstone, Mr. Peterson was chairman and CEO of Lehman Brothers from 1973 to 1977 and later chairman and CEO of Lehman Brothers, Kuhn, Loeb Inc. from 1977 to 1984. He was chairman and CEO of Bell and Howell Corporation from 1963 to 1971. In 1971, President Richard Nixon named Mr. Peterson assistant to the president for international economic affairs. He was named secretary of commerce by President Nixon in 1972. Born on June 5, 1926, Mr. Peterson graduated from Northwestern University with a B.S. (summa cum laude) in 1947. He received his Masters in Business Administration with honors in 1951 from the University of Chicago.