Harvard Business School dean may join Citi board: Report
9 Jul, 2008,
NEW YORK: India-born chief executive Vikram Pandit-led world’s biggest bank Citigroup is close to announcing that Harvard Business School Dean Jay O Light will join the company’s board.
“Four months after embarking on a search for directors with financial expertise, Citigroup is close to announcing that the dean of the Harvard Business School will join its board,” the New York Times reported today quoting people briefed on the search.
The board is underfire after the banking giant incurred over 40 billion dollars in write-offs from the subprime crisis and is expected to see more write-downs in the second quarter.
Vikram Pandit had also announced a major restructuring initiative to shore up the firm from the subprime fiasco.
According to the newspaper, Jay O Light, an expert in asset and risk management, who has led the business school since 2005, is being recruited to fill one of at least three seats expected to be vacated in the coming months.
Earlier, the world’s biggest bank had confirmed that the company’s board is looking for new directors especially those with an expertise in finance and investments.
The confirmation came from Citigroup’s Independent Lead Director and Chairman of the Nomination and Governance Committee, Alain Belda, in response to shareholders’ inquiries related to the retirement of certain directors.
“… one director retired from the Board by not standing for reelection at the April 22, 2008 Annual Shareholder Meeting, and two other directors will meet the retirement age by the time of the April 2009 Annual Shareholder Meeting,” the banking giant had said in a statement.
