Bank of America's Anne Finucane Toasted by Bankers and Rock Stars at Carnegie Hall

(Bloomberg) -- Anne Finucane, one of Wall Street’s most powerful women, still has several weeks before her retirement as a vice chair at Bank of America Corp., but a ballroom full of dealmakers and artists was eager to pay respects.

Filmmaker Ken Burns, historian Doris Kearns Goodwin and banker Thomas Montag -- who’s also retiring -- were among those toasting Finucane’s legacy at the Plaza in Midtown Manhattan Wednesday night. The cavernous room was abuzz with champagne clinks and live music. By video, James Taylor offered his congratulations and Bono gave a wink.

“Where you go wrong as a woman is when you think you have to be someone else,” said Emily Kernan Rafferty, former president of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Finucane “has always been true to herself.” 

The occasion was to bestow the Carnegie Hall Medal of Excellence on Finucane, 69, adding her to a list of business leaders from James Gorman to Kenneth Lewis who have collected the honor since 2006. She is the second woman to accept the award for her work in philanthropy, commitment to the arts and mentorship. 

Many guests praised how Finucane pushed Bank of America to become more active in social and environmental causes ranging from access to the arts to climate change.

She recently returned from an appearance at COP26, where she accompanied Chief Executive Officer Brian Moynihan and helped represent the bank at the climate conference in Glasgow, Scotland.

“Well before climate change was recognized as the challenge of our time” Anne was there, Caroline Kennedy said in a speech. “The private sector is going to have to lead, and if it does it’s going to be following Anne and her vision.”

A Boston native, Finucane has worked her way up the banking industry since 1995, when she was at Bank of America predecessor Fleet Bank. She helped right the company after the financial crisis, working to rebuild its profits and image. 

Now, she’s stepping back to become a non-executive chair of the European banking arm and will join Bank of America’s global advisory council. “You don’t replace Anne Finucane,” said Katy Knox, president of Bank of America’s private bank. 

Over the years her job has taken Finucane around the world, from Rwanda to Beijing, Dubai to London. She stopped at Windsor Castle last month where the Queen and royal family were in attendance.

That visit “is not really my idea of my life,” Finucane said in an interview before the Carnegie Hall event. “My life has been, I hope, dedicated to a professional pursuit of contributing in some way to the company’s success. I just do it a little bit differently than others.” 

In a video tribute to the room of 250 guests, Finucane and Burns recalled meeting at an event where the movie maker admitted he was losing a sponsor for his project. Finucane said she happened to work at a big bank. “He’s the best filmmaker in America,” she recalls, thinking the sponsorship would be perfect for her firm. “Who else would be underwriting?”

Finucane is also stepping down from Carnegie Hall’s board of trustees, where she’s served for more than 15 years. She’ll still attend performances at the hall, which she refers to as a “temple of music,” and plans are under way for her replacement. 

“Anne thought through succession and how the relationship will be maintained,” Carnegie Hall artistic director Clive Gillinson said. “When you have a powerful institution, how do you use it for good? That responsibility is what drives her.” 

Bank of America, which donated $12 million to Carnegie Hall over the years, will remain a season sponsor. The company’s c-suite was present, including Moynihan, Alastair Borthwick and Andy Sieg. The gala raised $2.8 million for Carnegie Hall’s education and community programs.

Between courses, Anne greeted guests at every table, where talk of the Boston Red Sox and New England Patriots came up as mini lobster rolls were doled out. 

If Finucane had a swan song, what more appropriate than the opening number from the night’s headline entertainer, Audra McDonald, who performed “La Cage Aux Folles: I Am What I Am” after the burrata and squash appetizers were served.

“I don’t want praise, I don’t want pity,” she sang. “I bang my own drum. Some think it’s noise, I think it’s pretty.”

©2021 Bloomberg L.P.