Swiss banking giant UBS announced that its CEO, Peter Wuffli, is leaving immediately in a management shakeup. The firm’s board of directors has appointed Marcel Rohner as his replacement.
The firm said that the move came after the board rejected the idea of naming Wuffli as its chairman. Wuffli, will relinquish all of his functions at UBS and leave the bank.
Current chairman, Marcel Ospel, will continue as chairman for at least another term. The firm said that a year ago, Ospel “expressed a wish to initiate a generational change of management at UBS” and retire from his function within the foreseeable future. He also proposed that Wuffli be nominated his successor.
“After careful evaluation, the board of directors decided not to accept his proposal,” UBS said in a release.. “It does not view the succession of the CEO to the position of chairman as automatic. Instead, the board identifies independently the composition of the leadership team which, in its opinion, suits the bank the best. In this context, it asked Marcel Ospel to serve for at least another term of three years as chairman of the board of directors.”
Rohner, who is taking over as CEO, has until now served as deputy group CEO of UBS and chairman and CEO of Global Wealth Management & Business Banking. He enjoys the full and undivided confidence of the board, the firm says.
Raoul Weil will succeed Rohner as chairman and CEO of Global Wealth Management. Weil is currently a member of the group executive board and head of Wealth Management International.