President Barack Obama has nominated a Denver businessman to lead a foreign-aid agency aimed at fighting global poverty.
Obama selected Daniel Yohannes, president and chief executive of M&R Investments LLC, to serve as CEO of the Millennium Challenge Corp., which provides grants to some of the world’s poorest countries to help them find solutions to reduce poverty through sustainable economic growth.
Yohannes declined to comment Tuesday because his nomination has not yet been confirmed by the U.S. Senate.
During his 16 years in Colorado, Yohannes has made a mark on the community, both in business and through his civic involvement.
He serves on the boards of National Jewish Hospital and Research Center, the Denver Art Museum, the University of Colorado Medical School and Project C.U.R.E., which provides medical supplies to 110 countries.
Yohannes left Ethiopia when he was 17, arriving in Los Angeles with $150 in his pocket. He went to college and got into the banking business.
He came to Colorado 16 years ago to oversee Colorado National Bank, which eventually merged into Minneapolis- based U.S. Bank. As president and CEO of the bank from 1992 to 1999, he developed the Colorado franchise from $2 billion to $9 billion in assets.
In 2006, Mayor John Hickenlooper appointed Yohannes as co-chairman of his Greenprint Council, charged with overseeing the city’s sustainability plan.
Hickenlooper said Yohannes is a perfect fit for the MCC, which is applying business principles and substantial resources to fight poverty worldwide.
“I don’t know of any senior business executive with his level of success who has more compassion and more empathy for the sufferings of people around the world,” Hickenlooper said. “He’s in every sense the real deal, and the world will be better served by his efforts.”
Yohannes also was appointed in 2006 to oversee the transition team for incoming Gov. Bill Ritter.
“Daniel came to America as a teenager with $150 to his name and a desire to make a difference,” Ritter said in a statement issued Tuesday. “Over the years, he has become one of Colorado’s most successful business leaders. . . . I know his skills, expertise and dedication will serve him well in his new fight against global poverty.”
Margaret Jackson: 303-954-1473 or mjackson@denverpost.com
