Antony Jenkins, the chief executive
of Barclays, has been fired after falling out with the board over the
size of the investment bank and the pace of cost cutting.
The company said a search for Mr Jenkins' successor was underway. In a statement, Barclays deputy chairman Sir Michael Rake said he had "reflected long and hard on the issue of group leadership".
He said a "new set of skills" was required at the head of the group.
Barclays appointed Mr Jenkins as group chief executive in August 2012.
The
board said it recognised the contribution Mr Jenkins had made over the
past three years, and was "extremely grateful to him for bringing the
company to a much stronger position".
But it added that the bank's
non-executive directors had "concluded that new leadership is required
to accelerate the pace of execution going forward".
The bank appointed Mr Jenkins as group chief executive in August 2012.
Barclays' chairman John McFarlane has been named executive chairman until Mr Jenkins' successor is appointed.
Analysis: Kamal Ahmed, BBC business editor
Make
no mistake, Antony Jenkins, the chief executive of Barclays, has been
fired after falling out with the board over the size of the investment
bank and the pace of cost cutting.
Mr Jenkins, who became chief
executive in 2012, was told in the last few days that the board no
longer had confidence that he was the right man to lead the
organisation.
Senior sources have told me that Sir Mike Rake, the
deputy chairman of Barclays, approached the new chairman, John
McFarlane, to say that a number of board members were unhappy with the
speed of change at the bank.
They wanted cost cutting to go further and more attention paid to the investment bank which is seen as under-performing.
It
is thought that Sir Mike wants Barclays to retain its global presence
as a major investment bank whilst Mr Jenkins felt it should be cut back.
It
has been made clear to me that Mr Jenkins was seen as having done a
good job steadying the bank after the previous chief executive, Bob
Diamond, resigned.
But it is now time for a new person at the top.
Whilst
that search continues, Mr McFarlane will become chairman and chief
executive, a similar role to the one he held at the insurance giant
Aviva.
No comments:
Post a Comment