CHICAGO _ Days after news surfaced that President-elect Donald Trump is considering former Goldman Sachs executive Steven Mnuchin for Treasury secretary, Mnuchin says he is stepping down from Sears Holdings' board of directors.
The move is effective immediately, and reduces Sears Holdings' directors to nine, according to a news release.
Mnuchin, who had never worked in politics, served as finance chairman for part of Trump's campaign and helped create Trump's proposal to overhaul the tax code.
Mnuchin and Sears Holdings CEO Edward Lampert were once roommates at Yale. Mnuchin cut his chops on Wall Street, at New York investment bank Goldman Sachs and then at his own private equity fund.
Mnuchin joined the board of Sears Holdings Corp., headquartered in suburban Chicago, in 2005, about the same time Sears, Roebuck & Co. was merging with Kmart Holding Corp. Before that, he served on Kmart's board of directors.
He's leaving after a rough couple of years for the embattled retailer. Sears and Kmart have seen stores close and shrink, falling sales and layoffs. The company has plans to generate more cash from its well-known brands like Kenmore and Craftsman while lessening focus on other aspects that have seen a slump in sales.
"I wish the company and its associates all the best as Sears Holdings continues on its transformation," Mnuchin said in a statement.
