Mr. Matt Simmons

Founder
Ocean Energy Institute

Matthew Simmons is Chairman of Simmons & Company International, a specialized energy investment banking firm. The firm has completed approximately 600 investment banking projects for its worldwide energy clients at a combined dollar value in excess of $65 billion.

Mr. Simmons was raised in Kaysville, Utah. He graduated cum laude from the University of Utah and received an MBA with Distinction from HarvardBusinessSchool. He served on the faculty of HarvardBusinessSchool as a Research Associate for two years and was a Doctoral Candidate.

Mr. Simmons began a small investment bank/advisory firm in Boston. Among his early clients were several subsea service companies. By 1973, almost all of his clients were oil service companies. Following the 1973 Oil Shock, Simmons decided to create a Houston-based firm to concentrate on providing highest quality investment banking advice to the worldwide oil service industry. Over time, the specialization expanded into investment banking covering all aspects of the global energy industry.

Today the firm has approximately 145 employees and enjoys a leading role as one of the largest energy investment banking groups in the world. Its offices are in Houston, Texas; London, England; Boston, Massachusetts and Aberdeen, Scotland. 

He serves on the Board of Directors of Brown-Forman Corporation, The Initiative for a Competitive Inner City (Boston), HoustonTechnologyCenter (Houston) and the Center for Houston’s Future (Houston). Along with his wife, he is Co-Chairman of the National Trust Council. He also serves on The University of Texas’ M.D. Anderson Cancer Center Foundation Board of Visitors (Houston) and is a Trustee of the Bermuda Biological Station for Research. In addition, he is past Chairman of the National Ocean Industry Association. Mr. Simmons serves on the Board of Dean’s Advisors of Harvard Business School and is a past President of the Harvard Business School Alumni Association and a former member of the Visiting Committee of Harvard Business School. He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and The Atlantic Council of the United States.

Mr. Simmons’ recently published book Twilight in the Desert: The Coming Saudi Oil Shock and the World Economy has been listed on the Wall Street Journal’s best-seller list. He has also published numerous energy papers for industry journals and is a frequent speaker at government forums, energy symposiums and in board rooms of many leading energy companies around the world.  Mr. Simmons is married and has five daughters. His hobbies include watercolors, cooking, writing and travel.

Return to Speakers