Piraeus CEO appointment put off for 2017
The process for the appointment of a new chief executive officer will resume in 2017, Piraeus Bank’s governing board decided on Monday.
Earlier, the majority of the board had voted down the lone candidacy of Christos Papadopoulos due to reservations expressed by the European Central Bank’s Single Supervisory Mechanism (SSM).
Sources say that the appointment was postponed after consultation with the SSM, as it appears that once again the insistence of the Hellenic Financial Stability Fund (HFSF) that a CEO must be appointed did not convince the bank’s board. The HFSF is the biggest stakeholder in Piraeus Bank. It holds 26 percent of its shares.
The mandate of the board expires next summer and, according to sources, that will set the time frame for the completion of administrative changes in the lender.
Piraeus sources acknowledge the difficulties, but note that the alternate CEO of the bank, Giorgos Poulopoulos, who has undertaken the CEO’s duties, is a very well-qualified official with a long experience at the lender and, along with the rest of the board, is capable of securing the bank’s efficient operation.
The fresh postponement of the appointment has raised concerns among the bank’s shareholders, as well as the regulatory authorities. Piraeus has been without a chief executive officer since last January, as the appointment of Anthimos Thomopoulos’s successor has been dogged by successive postponements.
