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Abigail Johnson

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Abigail Johnson
Johnson in 2022
Born
Abigail Pierrepont Johnson

(1961-12-19) December 19, 1961 (age 63)
Boston, Massachusetts, US
EducationWilliam Smith College (BA)
Harvard University (MBA)
OccupationBusinesswoman
TitleChairwoman, CEO, and president, Fidelity Investments
Chairwoman, Fidelity International
Spouse
Christopher McKown
​
​
(m. 1988)​
Children2
FatherEdward Johnson III
RelativesEdward C. Johnson II (grandfather)

Abigail Pierrepont Johnson[1] (born December 19, 1961) is an American billionaire businesswoman heiress and the CEO of Fidelity Investments. Her family and their affliates own approximately 40% of Fidelity Investments, which was founded by her grandfather, Edward C. Johnson II.[2][3][4]

Since 2014, Johnson has been president and chief executive officer (CEO) of Fidelity,[5] and chair of its former sister company Fidelity International (FIL).[6][7] In November 2016, Johnson was named chair and remained CEO and president, giving her full control of Fidelity.[8]

As of June 2024, Johnson's wealth is approximately $35.6 billion according to Bloomberg L.P. and $31.1 billion according to Forbes.[9][10] She is one of the world's wealthiest women and the richest woman residing in Massachusetts. She is also ranked on the "Forbes list of the World's 100 Most Powerful Women".[11] She is a board member of Breakthrough Energy Ventures.[12]

Early life

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Abigail Johnson was born in Boston, Massachusetts[13] on December 19, 1961. Johnson and her younger siblings did not feel pressured to join the family business. As a child Johnson was attracted to her father’s work.[14]

Johnson attended Cambridge, Massachusetts private school Buckingham Browne & Nichols School and then graduated from William Smith College with a bachelor's degree in art history in 1984.[15] After working as a consultant at Booz Allen Hamilton, where she met her husband, Johnson completed an MBA at Harvard Business School.[6][1][16]

Fidelity Investments

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Johnson at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center in 2012

Upon graduating from Harvard Business School in 1988, Johnson joined Fidelity Investments, which her grandfather Edward Johnson II founded in 1946[6] and of which her father Edward Johnson III was then the CEO. She began as an analyst and portfolio manager.[6] In 2001, she was promoted to president of Fidelity Asset Management. During her time in that position, Johnson unsuccessfully attempted to orchestrate a vote to remove her father as CEO over disagreements about his business decisions.[17] In 2005, she became Head of Retail, Workplace, and Institutional Business. She was named president in 2012. In 2014, she became CEO,[18][19] and in 2016 she became chairman as well.[6] In 2018, Johnson introduced cryptocurrency investment at Fidelity, making it possible for institutional investors to trade Bitcoin and Ether.[6] In November 2018, she was named head of Fidelity Financial Services.[20]

At Fidelity, she reduced dependence on open-ended mutual funds, instead having the company focus on financial advice, brokerage services, and venture capital.[14]

Personal life

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Johnson is married to Christopher J. McKown. They have two daughters.[21] She continued working during the pregnancies.[22]

In 2002, she bought a seaside house in Nantucket Island for $9.72 million.[23] As of 2006, she owned an estate in Milton, Massachusetts.[24] She also owns an office building in London.[25]

Political contributions

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In 2015, Johnson donated $2,700, the maximum amount legally allowed for presidential primary campaigns, to Republican candidate Jeb Bush.[26] In 2016, she donated about $330,000 to Hillary Clinton's campaign and the Democratic National Committee.[27]

Awards and honors

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Johnson has served as a member of the Committee on Capital Markets Regulation and as a member of the board of directors of the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) and of MIT.[28] She is the first and only woman to serve on the board of the Financial Services Forum.[29]

Forbes has ranked Johnson among the most powerful women in the world:

Forbes: The World's 100 Most Powerful Women
Year Rank
2024 6
2023 8[30]
2022 5[31]
2021 6[32]
2020 9[6]
2019 7
2018 5
2017 7
2016 16
2015 19

Johnson was ranked 13th on Fortune's list of Most Powerful Women in 2023.[33] In 2024, American Banker recognized Johnson as the No. 2 Most Powerful Woman in Finance.[34]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "Abby Johnson Has Wedding". The New York Times. June 26, 1988.
  2. ^ Gyftopoulou, Loukia (March 22, 2024). "Fidelity's Abby Johnson Tightens Grip on Far-Flung Family Empire". Wealth Management.
  3. ^ "Johnson still Fidelity successor?". CNN. October 28, 2005.
  4. ^ Grind, Kirsten (October 13, 2014). "Abigail Johnson Named CEO of Fidelity Investments". The Wall Street Journal.
  5. ^ O'Donnell, Carl (October 13, 2014). "Abigail Johnson Replaces Father Edward As CEO Of Fidelity". Forbes.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g "Abigail Johnson". Forbes.
  7. ^ Lau, Debra (May 21, 2001). "Fidelity Promotes Abigail Johnson To President". Forbes.
  8. ^ Healy, Beth (November 21, 2016). "'Ned' Johnson stepping down as Fidelity chairman". The Boston Globe.
  9. ^ "Abigail Johnson". Forbes.
  10. ^ "Bloomberg Billionaires Index: Abigail Johnson". Bloomberg L.P.
  11. ^ "The World's Most Powerful Women". Forbes.
  12. ^ "BEV Board and Investors". Breakthrough Energy.
  13. ^ "Abigail P. Johnson, MBA 1988". Harvard Business School. May 23, 2018.
  14. ^ a b Frieswick, Kris (August 7, 2018). "Who's Afraid of Abby Johnson?". Boston.
  15. ^ "William Smith Leaders: Abigail P. Johnson '84". William Smith College.
  16. ^ "Fidelity: Here Comes Abby". Bloomberg News. July 8, 2002.
  17. ^ Grind, Kirsten (April 8, 2015). "Fidelity's New Chief Confronts Market Shift". The Wall Street Journal.
  18. ^ Grind, Kirsten (October 13, 2014). "Abigail Johnson Named CEO of Fidelity Investments". The Wall Street Journal.
  19. ^ McLaughlin, Tim (October 14, 2014). "Fidelity names Abigail Johnson as chief executive". Australian Financial Review.
  20. ^ Goodison, Donna (November 17, 2018). "Fidelity promotes heir apparent Abby Johnson". Boston Herald.
  21. ^ "Johnson, Abigail". Encyclopedia.com.
  22. ^ Andrews, Suzanna (December 20, 2012). "Fidelity Investments' Abby Johnson, the Invisible Heir". Bloomberg News.
  23. ^ Reed, Danielle (August 2, 2002). "Fidelity's No. 3 Gets Seaside Home; Los Angeles Real Estate Stays Hot". The Wall Street Journal.
  24. ^ Clemence, Sara (September 26, 2006). "How the richest Americans live". NBC News.
  25. ^ "FOCUS: The rich and famous who own iconic UK property from Guernsey". Bailiwick Express. May 19, 2023.
  26. ^ Ryan, Greg (November 13, 2015). "Fidelity's Abigail Johnson maxes out donations to this presidential candidate". American City Business Journals.
  27. ^ Pendleton, Devon; Maloney, Tom; McDonald, Michael (August 3, 2020). "Fidelity Family's Vast Wealth Is Matched by Passion for Privacy". Bloomberg News.
  28. ^ Ryan, Greg (September 6, 2019). "Fidelity's Abby Johnson strikes deal to stay off stand in MIT 401(k) trial". American City Business Journals.
  29. ^ Healy, Beth (December 5, 2014). "Abigail Johnson, after years of training, gets to put her stamp on Fidelity". The Boston Globe.
  30. ^ "The World's Most Powerful Women 2023". Forbes.
  31. ^ Contreras, Isabel (December 6, 2022). "The World's 100 Most Powerful Women". Forbes. Retrieved May 10, 2023.
  32. ^ Contreras, Isabel (December 7, 2021). "Most Powerful Women In Finance". Forbes. Retrieved December 31, 2021.
  33. ^ "Most Powerful Women". Fortune.
  34. ^ Gorrivan, Charles (September 27, 2023). "The Most Powerful Women in Finance: No. 2, Abigail Johnson, Fidelity Investments". American Banker.
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