Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C): CEO Vikram Pandit steps down after five years

Friction between Vikram Pandit and the board of directors in Citigroup Inc.(NYSE:C) lead to Pandit resigning from his post. However, he was not alone, since along with him, the COO, John Havens also quite the job. The tension between the board as well as Pandit was over the ideology followed regarding the performance of the bank, as well as the strategy behind it. Both the men, now 55, resigned from their posts in the New York- based company. This happened on Tuesday, which also came as a shock to most of the employees at Citigroup. Mike Corbat is to take Pandit’s place as the CEO of the third largest bank in the United States of America.

The shock was relevant even for the senior officials in the bank because Pandit had not hinted at a desire to leave the bank. He had plans for the bank, and he was intending to implement them up until the time that the focus shifted to the bank’s international operations.

Vikram Pandit had entered the bank at a time of grave financial crisis, and he had rebuilt the structure of the bank to yield profits very soon. The global franchise had been made stronger under him, as was the focus on the business. Pandit had also lead the company to recapitalize. It was under Pandit that Citigroup was able to pay back the loan it had taken from the government. This was done in 2008 and 2009. Under his leadership, the bank also managed to sell off substantial amounts of money in unwanted assets, which ran to millions. The company, under his guidance, has come to earn about $11 Billion dollars after so many years.

However, this is not to say that his system was flawless. Shareholders revolted over the pay of executives, the Federal Reserve rejected the idea of buying back some of the stocks, and other such issues have cropped up. However, the fact remains that he had still managed to rescue the bank when it was sinking. After he left, the shares rose by thirty percent to $36.96 on Tuesday, during midday trading.