Citi top executive quits as Pandit gets down to work
Thursday, 13 December 2007, 20:30 IST
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New York: Only two days after taking over as the new chief executive of Citigroup, America's largest bank, Vikram S. Pandit has announced the resignation of the financial giant's chief operating officer Robert Druskin. It was not clear whether the move was linked to Pandit's plans for fixing Citigroup hard hit by its exposure to mortgage-related investments to the tune of about $18 billion and shoring up its stock price, which has plunged 38 percent this year. But DealBook, a New York Times blog, noted Thursday that Druskin, a longtime adviser and friend to former CEO Charles O. Prince III, spearheaded the reorganisation at the firm that led to 17,000 layoffs last spring. The news was conveyed to Citi employees via internal memorandums from Pandit and Druskin, who would be retiring at the end of the year. "I am sorry to see him leave, but after 16 years of exceptional service to Citi, he certainly has earned that right. I clearly understand and respect his decision," said Pandit, describing Druskin as "an outstanding executive and an extraordinary individual." "The company is in very good hands with Vikram as Chief Executive, Sir Win (Winfried F.W. Bischoff) as Chairman and all of you in our businesses, regions and functions; I can't imagine a more talented or dedicated team," said Druskin noting that "with the company entering an important next phase now seems right (time) to me" to leave. DealBook also said that with the appointment of Pandit as CEO, attention is increasingly turning to the question of whether he will break up the financial behemoth. In an interview for BusinessWeek, Pandit remained vague about whether asset-sales were on the table. One of his main focuses, Pandit said, is "to look at every one of our businesses...individually and collectively, to make sure they're the right businesses and they are positioned for the future we see in financial services." The company's diversified model, masterminded by Sanford I. Weill, has come under criticism from investors who say Citigroup has become too unwieldy to be managed effectively. Its stock price has fallen 40 percent this year and its balance sheet is overstretched. The company could face billions of dollars in additional losses on troubled credit card, auto and home loans. The New York Times had reported Wednesday that the choice of Pandit and Bischoff suggest that Citigroup's future rests in its investment banking businesses and the international arena. Asked by BusinessWeek whether he was thinking about splitting up Citigroup, Pandit said: "I don't want to get down to any options today, nor do I want to take any options off the table. "What I'm saying is that this company has a lot of great businesses and is in a lot of the right areas to capture future trends. I really just need time to assess what those trends are...and I have to take an objective, dispassionate look [at the business], which will encompass all possibilities."
Source: IANS
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