Meltdown

Final Days of Freddie Mac CFO

Struggled as company lost billions.

It is not clear whether work troubles were what drove Freddie Mac CFO David Kellermann to suicide, but it is certain that the months since his promotion were trying. Kellerman spent hours every day meeting with chief executive David Moffett, even after everyone else had gone home, wrestling with the difficulties of a company that had been near collapse. He worked his way up at the mortgage giant from a young financial analyst to become one of its main points of contact with government overseers. The company’s billions of dollars in losses and other accounting and legal issues had taken an increasing toll on Kellerman, who, according to colleagues, refused to take any time off. He also found himself at the center of recent controversies. Among them, the bonus fiasco. He was slated to receive $850,000 over the course of a year and a half, $170,000 of which had already been disbursed.