CEO Watch - Vikram Pandit, CitiGroup, Update #2

Damian Paletta and David Enrich wrote an article in the Wall Street Journal about growing pressure from the head of the FDIC, Sheila Bair, on executive management at CitiGroup. According to the reporters,

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. is pushing for a shake-up of Citigroup Inc.’s top management, imperiling Chief Executive Vikram Pandit, people familiar with the matter said.

The FDIC, under Chairman Sheila Bair, also recently pressed a fellow regulator to lower the government’s confidential ranking of Citi’s health — a change that would let regulators control the firm more tightly.

It is really difficult to determine how all these forces will ultimately play out and what they will mean for Pandit as well as a number of the executives under him. It is certainly possible his tenure may not extend much longer, we will just have to wait and see.

For more:

Reuters

Recommended Reading - Vikram Pandit to Get The Heave-Ho?, Dealbreaker

Dealbreaker early today, prior to Citi’s shareholder meeting, talked about speculation that Vikram Pandit, Citgroup’s CEO, could be forced out should the bank have to go back to the government trough for further funds. According to a story in the Financial Times referred to in the Dealbreaker piece,

… senior officials at the FDIC have been talking Pandito replacements, in the event the bank needs more cash-money. Apparently successors include new CFO Ned Kelly, old CFO Gary Crittenden, and an unnamed new board member.

I suspect Pandit will be around at Citi for a while. Unlike Lewis at the Bank of America, Pandit while not demonstrating extraordinary leadership talent has not made the kind of blunders Lewis has been saddled with. Time will tell.

For more:

Clusterstock