Safra Catz
Born 1961 · Age 64
Israeli–American banker and technology executive; long-time Oracle executive who became co-CEO in 2014 and sole CEO in 2019. Known for driving many of Oracle's acquisitions and for being one of the highest-paid female executives.
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Life & Career Timeline
Birth in Holon, Israel
Safra Ada Catz was born in Holon, Israel to Jewish parents (father of Romanian origin). Sources differ on exact day; December 1961 is consistent.
Immigrated to the United States
Moved from Holon, Israel to Brookline, Massachusetts with her family at about age six.
Graduated Brookline High School
Completed secondary education at Brookline High School (exact graduation year approximated from birth year and college enrollment).
Earned B.A. from Wharton School (UPenn)
Graduated from the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania with a bachelor's degree (major: business). Member of Chi Omega and participated in fencing.
Earned J.D., University of Pennsylvania Law School
Completed Juris Doctor degree at University of Pennsylvania Law School.
Started investment banking career at Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette (DLJ)
Began working on Wall Street in investment banking; later held multiple roles over more than a decade.
Promoted to Senior Vice President at DLJ
Served as senior vice president at Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette (Jan 1994 – Feb 1997).
Relocated to Silicon Valley
Requested and took a transfer to Silicon Valley to be closer to technology customers; moved there with husband and children.
Married Gal Tirosh
Married Gal Tirosh, a former soccer coach. The couple later had two sons.
Promoted to Managing Director at DLJ
Served as Managing Director at DLJ from Feb 1997 to Mar 1999; also in 1997 requested relocation to Silicon Valley.
Promoted to Executive Vice President at Oracle
Elevated internally at Oracle within months of joining to an executive vice president-level role (exact month not specified).
Joined Oracle Corporation as Senior Vice President
Joined Oracle in April 1999 initially as senior vice president; promoted to executive vice president within months.
Elected to Oracle Board of Directors
Placed on Oracle's board by Larry Ellison (October 2001).
Named President of Oracle
Became president of Oracle in early 2004, taking on broader operational responsibilities.
Appointed Director of PeopleSoft (post-acquisition involvement)
Listed as a director of PeopleSoft Inc. since December 2004 (context: Oracle pursued and completed acquisition in 2005).
Led Oracle's takeover of PeopleSoft
Credited with driving Oracle's 2005 hostile/competitive acquisition of PeopleSoft for $10.3 billion.
Appointed Interim Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of Oracle
Served temporarily as Oracle CFO from November 2005 to September 2008.
Listed Director of Stellent Inc.
Recorded as a director of Stellent Inc. since December 2006 (Oracle acquired Stellent in 2006).
Led acquisition of Hyperion Corporation
Oracle acquired Hyperion for approximately $3.3 billion; Catz played a major role in Oracle acquisition strategy.
Non-executive Director of Hyperion Solutions
Became a non-executive director of Oracle subsidiary Hyperion Solutions in April 2007 (Oracle acquired Hyperion).
Appointed Director of HSBC
Joined the board of HSBC in 2008; served until 2015.
Led acquisition of BEA Systems
Oracle acquired BEA Systems for about $8.5 billion during a wave of large software deals.
Ended interim CFO term (Sept 2008)
Concluded temporary CFO duties in September 2008 (returned to other senior roles).
Named among most powerful women in business (Fortune/Forbes)
Ranked #12 by Fortune (2009) and #16 by Forbes (2009) in lists of powerful businesswomen.
Mark Hurd joined as co-president
Mark Hurd and Safra Catz served together as co-presidents (Hurd joined as co-president in 2010).
Oracle acquired Sun Microsystems
Oracle completed the $7.4 billion acquisition of Sun Microsystems (important for Java, Solaris). Catz helped drive Oracle's acquisitive strategy.
Highest-paid woman among Fortune 1000 companies (estimated)
Equilar analysis published by Fortune estimated her 2011 total remuneration at about $51,695,742.
Named Co-President and Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of Oracle
In April 2011 Catz was named co-president and chief financial officer, reporting to Larry Ellison.
Acquired Acme Packet
Oracle purchased Acme Packet for about $2.1 billion (2013); part of a string of strategic acquisitions.
Joined TechNet executive council
Named a member of the executive council of TechNet in March 2013.
Oracle acquired MICROS Systems
Oracle completed the acquisition of MICROS Systems for approximately $5.3 billion (2014).
Named Co-CEO of Oracle (joint with Mark Hurd)
Larry Ellison stepped down as CEO and Safra Catz and Mark Hurd were named joint CEOs in September 2014; Ellison became Executive Chairman and CTO.
Oracle acquired NetSuite (~largest recent acquisition)
Oracle acquired NetSuite (reported ~ $9.3–9.4 billion). This deal later became the subject of stockholder litigation.
Ranked highest-paid female CEO (2016)
Catz earned $40.9 million in 2016, making her the highest paid female CEO in the U.S. that year.
Donation to Marco Rubio (Republican primaries)
Donated to Marco Rubio during the 2016 Republican presidential primaries (media-reported political contribution).
Joined Donald Trump's Presidential Transition Team
Named as a member of the Trump transition team after the 2016 election; remained at Oracle while participating in transition activities.
Litigation begun challenging NetSuite acquisition
In 2017 litigation was filed alleging Ellison and Catz misled Oracle's special committee around the 2016 NetSuite acquisition.
Elected to Walt Disney Company board (effective Feb 2018)
Elected to Disney's board in December 2017 with the appointment effective February 2018.
Member, National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence (NSCAI)
Appointed to the bipartisan NSCAI, created in 2018; the commission issued its final report in March 2021.
Shortlisted for national security roles (media reports)
Media reported she was considered or shortlisted for positions such as National Security Advisor and other administration roles in 2018.
Donated over $150,000 to Republican-aligned groups (2018 cycle)
Media reported combined donations of over $150,000 to Republican groups and individuals in the 2018 cycle, including to Rep. Devin Nunes.
Mark Hurd resigned for health reasons; Catz became sole acting CEO
In September 2019 Mark Hurd resigned due to health issues; reports indicated Catz would serve as sole CEO following his resignation and subsequent death.
Mark Hurd died
Oracle co-CEO Mark Hurd passed away (widely reported Oct 18, 2019); catalyzed Catz becoming sole CEO.
Oracle stated Catz would be sole CEO
In December 2019 Oracle publicly stated Safra Catz would be the company's sole CEO after Hurd's death.
Personal/political donation to Trump's 2020 campaign
Safra Catz and her spouse contributed $250,000 to Donald Trump's 2020 presidential campaign (reported).
Notable stock trading: converted derivatives into shares (2.25M shares)
In March 2021 Catz acquired 2.25 million Oracle shares via conversion of derivatives, then sold them on the open market at roughly double the acquisition price; drew media attention.
NSCAI issued final report
The National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence (of which Catz was a member) published its final report in March 2021.
Oracle compensation disclosed: $138 million (2022)
Catz's total compensation from Oracle for 2022 was reported at $138 million, making her among the highest-paid CEOs in the U.S. for that year.
Reported dispute over Disney film content (internal board matter)
As a Disney board member, Catz reportedly objected strongly to a gay character in Walt Disney Animation's Strange World (2022), per media reports about board tensions.
Appointed to Homeland Security Advisory Council
Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas appointed Catz to the Homeland Security Advisory Council in March 2022.
Ranked among Forbes/Fortune most powerful women
Ranked #17 on Forbes World's Most Powerful Women 2023 and ranked #11 on Fortune's Most Powerful Women in 2023 (sources vary by list).
Listed on Forbes World's Most Powerful Women 2024
Forbes listed Safra Catz on its 2024 World's Most Powerful Women list (rank #17 reported in some sources).
Oracle CloudWorld 2024 speaking appearance
Photographed and spoke at Oracle CloudWorld 2024 (captioned image in Wikipedia entry), demonstrating ongoing executive public role.
Reported cumulative acquisitions milestone (Oracle)
Media and company histories note Catz has driven Oracle through a very large number of acquisitions (reports vary: 'more than 100' to 'almost 130' acquisitions since mid-2000s).
Residence in Fort Lauderdale, Florida (current)
Reportedly resides in Fort Lauderdale, Florida with her family.
Delaware Supreme Court rules in favor of Ellison and Catz in NetSuite litigation
On Jan 21, 2025 the Delaware Supreme Court ruled for Larry Ellison and Safra Catz, resolving the multi-billion dollar stockholder challenge related to the NetSuite acquisition.
Key Achievement Ages
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