Seaspan Appoints Sokol as Chairman in Connection to CEO Retirement



Seaspan announced that Gerry Wang, its CEO, co-chairman and co-founder, will retire effective December 31, 2017. In order to facilitate an orderly transition, Wang will continue in his current role as CEO until a permanent CEO is identified or December 31, 2017, and will continue to serve on Seaspan’s board until the end of the year.

The board of directors appointed David Sokol, a member of the board of directors and executive committee of Seaspan, as chairman of the board. Concurrent with this change, Kyle Washington and Wang were both recognized as chairman emeritus.

Seaspan also promoted Peter Curtis to executive vice president and chief operating officer. Curtis joined Seaspan in 2001 as vice president to establish and lead the ship management function and has served as the chief operating officer of the company since 2012.

The board of directors also formed the office of the chairman, under the direction of Sokol. In this role, Sokol will oversee the CEO succession and overall leadership transition. The office of the chairman will consist of Wang; Curtis; Mark Chu, chief development officer and general counsel; David Spivak, CFO and Gabrielle Smith, director of human resources.

Dennis R. Washington, whose family is Seaspan’s largest shareholder, commented, “It has been a pleasure partnering with Gerry since the company’s founding by Gerry nearly 20 years ago. Gerry, along with Seaspan’s world class professionals, has built Seaspan into the world’s leading containership leasing platform. I wish Gerry great success in all his future activities and good health, and appreciate him working with David Sokol and the management team for a smooth transition into Seaspan’s next phase of growth.”

David Sokol commented, “I have been impressed with Seaspan’s outstanding group of employees, from those operating the ships to the senior management team, and it is an honor to serve as chairman of this dedicated and talented group of professionals. Continuously exceeding our customers’ expectations has been a hallmark of Seaspan’s success and we will not waver from our high standards. Peter Curtis has a proven track record of meeting the exacting needs of our customers, and we are pleased to promote him to executive vice president and chief operating officer. As the world’s leading container ship leasing franchise, Seaspan is very well positioned to capitalize on opportunities that arise during this period of improving industry fundamentals.”

Wang commented, “I am extremely proud of Seaspan’s accomplishments and its unsurpassed industry position. It has been a fun and challenging journey for the past 20 years. I am choosing this timing because the company’s financial and operational position is strong and industry fundamentals have improved. I would like to thank the Washington family for its unwavering support of Seaspan over the years, in particular during the 2008 financial crisis with the $180 million series A preferred equity investment. I would also like to thank the company’s dedicated employees for making Seaspan the first choice among customers and the source of our success. I also thank our many investors and capital providers including banks for their ongoing partnership with our company. It has been my honor serving as Seaspan’s CEO since the company was founded, and I wish everyone the best in the future. Finally, I would like to thank my wife and family for all the support they have provided me.”

Sokol currently serves as a director of WashCo, which, through its affiliates Deep Water Holdings and Copper Lion, is Seaspan’s founding shareholder and largest shareholder. During Sokol’s 38-year career he has founded three companies, taken three companies public, chaired five corporate boards and over a dozen charitable or community boards. As chairman and CEO of MidAmerican Energy Holdings Company, he sold the company to Berkshire Hathaway in 2000. Sokol continued with Berkshire Hathaway until he retired in March 2011 in order to manage his family business investments.

Seaspan offers long-term leases on large, modern containerships and ship management services. Seaspan’s managed fleet consists of 114 containerships representing a total capacity of more than 915,000 TEU, including nine newbuilding containerships on order scheduled for delivery to Seaspan and third parties by the end of 2018.


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