Sotheby's Names New CEO Following Takeover

RAPAPORT... The media tycoon who recently bought Sotheby's has appointed a senior executive from his business empire as the auction house's new CEO.Charles Stewart will assume the role with immediate effect, having served as copresident and chief financialofficer of Patrick Drahi's Altice USA since 2016. He helped lead that company's successful $2.1billion initial public offering in 2017, and was instrumental in drivinginnovation and growth, Sotheby's said Tuesday.Stewart has also worked in thebanking and finance sectors, most notably as CEO for Itau BBA International, the holdingcompany for Itau-Unibanco, the largest bank in Latin America. "Charlie is a talented executive who brings years ofinternational experience to Sotheby's," Drahi noted. "I have known him for manyyears and have been impressed by his appetite for innovation, taking smartrisks and challenging the status quo. He has a proven record of driving growth,and is ideally positioned to create value for Sotheby's clients and ouroutstanding team." Stewart succeeds Tad Smith, who is stepping down after four-and-a-halfyears. Smith will become a shareholder of the company, and act as a senioradviser to Stewart. Smith is not the first Sotheby's employee Drahi has replacedwith a member of his own team since acquiring the auction house for $3.7billion in June. Earlier this month, he installed Jean-Luc Berrebi, the head ofhis family office, as chief financial officer succeeding both Mike Goss, thehead of finance, and John Cahill, executive vice president and chief commercialofficer. Image: Charles Stewart. (Sotheby's)