In Memoriam: Peter Thomson

"Thommo" worked at Chase London

Peter Thomson, a leading figure in Chase London's dealing room for two decades, passed away suddenly on Friday, June 5, 2009 in England.   Although his health had not been good for the past few years, as a result of which he stood down from  the Chairmanship of the Retirees Association, while  still remaining a Member  of the Committee, his death was totally unexpected.

Douglas MacCabe and Paul Sullivan write:

"Peter was one of Chase London's dealing room stalwarts in the 1980s and 1990s, and, along with Mark Heselden, formed a great partnership on the deposit dealing desks.  Thommo, as he was inevitably known, had a vast array of contacts amongst corporates and other banks across the EMEA region and ensured the bank had sufficient third party money to meet the new regulatory and internal guidelines. His ability to make and keep business and personal relationships was due to his open and enthusiastic personality and terrific sense of humour. He really was an asset in the room.

"Peter talked to clients raising money across Europe and the Middle East in the morning, and advised the New York funding desks in the afternoon on activity in the corporate markets.  Following the real estate crisis in the early 1990s, Chase Treasury realized the cost of funding would increase and become tighter, so Mark and Thommo set about calling every contact to garner funds ahead of the scramble that most thought would surely follow the crisis.  Their efforts secured good funds for Chase ahead of the competition and helped retain liquidity in difficult funding conditions.

"A gifted cricketer (wicketkeeper), Thommo was offered professional terms by Glamorgan in his late teens but chose to work in the City and by the end of his career probably knew most of the people who had worked in it.   An immensely sociable individual, he was a polite and considerate man, and he had a rare gift of being able to talk to and involve people of all ages in things that interested him (mainly sport) ... particularly so when demonstrating cricketing techniques in the dealing room during quieter (!) moments in the afternoon. Peter was a family man, a great lover of life, and was devoted to his wife, Rosemary, and children, Julia and Andrew.  Sadly missed!"

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Other alumni wishing to share a remembrance should send it to news@chasealum.org.