David Viniar

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David A. Viniar (born 1955) is an American businessman who spent most of his career at Goldman Sachs, where he was the chief financial officer and executive vice president from 1999 until January 31, 2013, and later served on the firm’s board. A Bronx High School of Science graduate (1972), he earned a B.A. in economics from Union College in 1976 and an MBA from Harvard Business School in 1980. After business school, he joined Goldman Sachs and rose through the ranks, becoming head of treasury (1992–1994), head of finance (1994–1998), deputy CFO (1998–1999), and CFO for Goldman Sachs Group, L.P. for a brief period in 1999. He was named executive vice president and CFO in 1999, and since December 2002 he led Operations, Technology, Finance and Services. He also co-headed credit risk management and firmwide risk from 2001 to 2002 and had various other finance and risk roles over the years.

Viniar announced his retirement in September 2012 and stepped down as CFO on January 31, 2013, becoming a Goldman Sachs director. Later that year, on October 30, 2013, he joined Square, Inc. as a director. He is linked to the so‑called “Viniar problem”—the idea that extreme market moves can overwhelm financial models—after a 2007 Financial Times report about hedge funds that suffered large losses. He testified before the Senate in 2010 about the role of investment banks in the 2008 financial crisis. Viniar has served on the boards of Union College, Children’s Aid and Family Services, and the Financial Accounting Foundation. He is married to Susan and they have four children.