NFF Gold Medal Recipients
Biography
William Spencer was the No. 2 executive at the holding company for what became Citibank and helped propel the bank to the top of the industry. He was born in Grand Junction, Colo., and graduated from Colorado College in 1939. His charitable involvement was broad, including leading a campaign to reorganize the New York City blood bank.
He worked under Walter B. Wriston, the chairman, who cited Mr. Spencer's agility in financing loans to the oil industry, but said his contributions extended well beyond that. Mr. Spencer was president of the First National City Corporation, which evolved into Citicorp and then Citigroup, and its bank, First National City Bank, now Citibank, from 1970 to 1982.
Mr. Spencer, a big-game hunter and ardent conservationist, made many speeches arguing that the emerging global economy required greater awareness of the world's diversity. He died in 2001 at the age of 84.
