McGraw Hill Financial said its board of directors has elected Douglas Peterson president and chief executive officer, effective November 1, 2013. He was also elected a member of the company’s board of directors, effective immediately. Peterson is currently president of Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services, a business unit of McGraw Hill Financial.

He will succeed Harold (Terry) McGraw III, who is currently chairman, president and chief executive officer. McGraw will continue as chairman of the board of directors. A search for Peterson’s successor as president of Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services is underway.

“Doug Peterson is a proven global leader with an impressive track record of achievements in his outstanding career. He has successfully led the evolution at Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services since he joined the company in 2011. Doug is a seasoned executive with more than 25 years of experience in financial services, including as chief operating officer of Citibank, which operates in over 100 countries. Earlier in his career, Doug was CEO of Citigroup Japan and chief auditor of Citigroup. He also held leadership positions for Citibank in Uruguay and Costa Rica,” McGraw said.

Peterson added, “I feel honored and proud to be asked to lead this great Company. Terry’s passion, optimism and exceptional management of the Company have positioned us to succeed going forward. Terry and the Board had the vision to create McGraw Hill Financial and now I look forward to leading this new, fast-growing financial intelligence company. McGraw Hill Financial, with its iconic brands, promotes sustainable and orderly growth in the capital and commodity markets as the foremost provider of ratings, benchmarks and analytics to financial professionals and investors worldwide. I look forward to meeting with investors, clients, public officials and employees in the coming months to discuss how McGraw Hill Financial can even better serve the financial markets.”