Ambassador A. Vernon Weaver was sworn in on July 16, 1996, as U.S. Representative to the European Union. His nomination, announced by President Bill Clinton on June 14, 1996, was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on June 27. At the time of his nomination, Ambassador Weaver was Assistant to the Chairman of the Board of Stephens Group and Stephens Inc., an investment banking firm of Little Rock, Arkansas.
During his 32 years with Stephens and its affiliates, he directed several companies owned by the group. He supervised Stephens Inc.’s operations in Europe and, as President and Chief Executive Officer of Stephens Overseas Services, he directed financial institutions in Indonesia, Singapore, and Hong Kong.
From 1977-1981, he served as Administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) under President Jimmy Carter. Among the highlights of his tenure there were the Certified Bank Program transferring administration of government-guaranteed small business loans from the SBA to certified private banks, and the inauguration of special loan programs for disadvantaged and women-owned businesses.
Ambassador Weaver was President of Union Life Insurance of Little Rock, Arkansas (1964-1977). A graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis, he served as an officer in the U.S. Navy 1946-1953, and as a member of the Naval Academy’s Board of Visitors (1994-1996). He is married to Joyce McCoy Weaver and has three daughters, Valerie McNeese, Vanessa Weaver, and Daphne Weaver.