Boston, MA 10/14/2013 (wallstreetpr) – Citigroup Inc (NYSE:C) has confirmed that Barbara Desoer who was formerly in charge of the home mortgage division at rival Bank of America, will be joining their ranks as chief operating officer for Citibank NA. Citibank NA is the legal division of Citigroup Inc (NYSE:C) which is currently ranked as the third largest US bank by assets behind second placed Bank of America. In an internal memo circulated to employees this past week, company CEO Gene McQuade announced that Ms Desoer will assume her new post on Tuesday.
Barbara Desoer, who was described by the CEO in the memo as “the ideal person to deepen the management bench of both CBNA and of Citi,” will bring to Citigroup Inc (NYSE:C) a wealth of knowledge and experience from her years in the banking industry. McQuade also stated in the document that the new COO of Citibank NA was “a senior leader in retail and commercial banking during the early integration of Bank of America and Nations Bank.” Named one of the 50 Most Powerful Women in Business by Fortune Magazine in 2010, she was even being considered as a suitable replacement for Ken Lewis when he stepped down as CEO of Bank of America in 2009, a position which eventually was filled by Brian Moynihan. She also held senior positions in marketing, commercial lending and retail banking and was at one time chief technology and operations officer.
Following a management restructuring exercise at Bank of America last year, Ms Desoer announced her resignation to pursue personal goals and she reiterated in a later interview that the move was voluntary. She also said at the time that she would definitely be returning to the financial services industry so this latest move to join Citigroup Inc (NYSE:C) does not come as a complete shock.
