In a surprise move, EFG International has appointed a new chief executive officer. The move comes before the Swiss private bank has fully digested a rival tarnished by the 1MDB scandal.
Just one month ago, he spoke to finews.com-TV about concluding the merger of scandal-engulfed Banca della Svizzera Italiana, or BSI. Just four weeks later, EFG boss Joachim «Joe» Straehle is leaving the Swiss bank, in a surprise move.
The bank said the 59-year-old Straehle, who formerly led Bank Sarasin & Cie before it was sold to J. Safra six years ago, will retire at year-end. EFG said Straehle is retiring now that the bank has merged information technology in Zurich and Geneva between BSI and EFG.
While the two cities are undoubtedly a key milestone in the overall merger, the timing of Straehle's departure is nevertheless puzzling: the merger concluded in June, but another key IT migration – in BSI's former headquarters in Lugano – still looms before year-end.
Straehle (pictured above) will be replaced by 50-year-old ItalianGiorgio Pradelli, effective January 1. Dimitris Politis will succeed Pradelli, who has been deputy boss since 2014, in his role as CFO. Renato Cohn was appointed EFG’s new deputy CEO.
Pandora's Box
Straehle is a long-standing Swiss private banker and veteran of Credit Suisse. Just months after deciding to buy rival Banca della Svizzera Italiana last February, Straehle was confronted with the private banking equivalent of a Pandora's box: BSI was neck-deep in the 1MDB graft scandal in Asia, and was forcibly shut in Singapore in May of last year.
EFG went ahead with the deal, if with considerably more attention from regulators and the industry than such deals would otherwise command and with very public haggling with previous owner BTG.
