Guy Lachappelle handily won the backing he needed to become Raiffeisen's new chairman, but starts his tenure without a CEO. The cooperative bank is disappointed in outgoing CEO Patrik Gisel.
With no opposition, Guy Lachappelle (pictured below) secured the backing of an overwhelming majority of delegates at an extraordinary meeting of the Swiss cooperative bank to become their chairman, Raiffeisen said in a statement on Saturday.
Representatives from Raiffeisen's member banks also voted in new board directors including Karin Valenzano Rossi, Andrej Golob, Thomas Mueller and Beat Schwab. The election represents shareholders' clear backing for a renewal, according to Raiffeisen.
CEO No-Show
Since the election was closed to media, it is impossible to gauge how much protest the delegates directed towards Raiffeisen. The one person who would have provoked a reaction from delegates – CEO Patrik Gisel – didn't appear at all, having stepped down late on Friday night (he was meant to stay until year-end).
Gisel's secret relationship with Laurence de la Serna, a French-Swiss businesswoman who sat on Raiffeisen's board until give months ago, proved too much. Pascal Gantenbein, who handed over his interim chairmanship to Lachappelle on Saturday, told journalists that he was disappointed in Gisel's behavior.
Management Clear-Out
The election cements Lachappelle as a chairman without a real CEO: Michael Auer, Gisel's deputy who will take the top spot temporarily, has already flagged his exit as soon as Raiffeisen has found a new CEO.
«I will exercise my leadership role with all consequences and do everything in my power to lead Raiffeisen into a successful future,» the newly-minted chairman said on Saturday.
- Page 1 of 2
- Next >>
