CEO Mustier of UniCredit sheds idea of switching to HSBC

CEO
Jean Pierre Mustier of UniCredit was previously reported to have plans of switching
to HSBC. In his announcement on Sunday, however, Mustier declared that he will
no longer be quitting UniCredit to join its European rival.

Mustier
was reported as a top contender for the leading position at HSBC in the past
week. The speculation that he may be looking for a switch will fade away once
the largest bank in Italy releases an official statement that the executive
will keep his role at the financial services company.

UniCredit
has chosen not to comment on the news any further at this stage.

Noel
Quinn Is Currently Serving As The Interim CEO At HSBC

HSBC
ousted its CEO, John Flint, last year, following which, the European bank declared
that it’s hunting for a suitable candidate for the role of the new CEO. The
bank had given a deadline of six to twelve months in which the new executive was
to be announced. In the meantime, internal candidate Noel Quinn took over as
the interim CEO of HSBC. Owing to his performance, Quinn is also currently the
top favorite for the permanent CEO position at the European bank.

The
sources also informed that Mustier was expected to be strong competition for
Quinn in pursuit of the permanent position at HSBC. With him withdrawing, votes
for Quinn are likely to boost significantly. Under Mark Tucker, the current
chairman of HSBC, Quinn has already announced plans
of an overhaul at the European bank.

The
specifics of Quinn’s overhaul strategy included $100 billion worth of assets
shed, contraction of the investment bank and restructuring the financial
services company in two of its largest markets, Europe and the U.S. All in all,
it will translate to a massive 35,000 jobs cut in the upcoming 3 years.

Analysts
And Investors Are Disappointed In Tucker’s Decision Of Not Choosing Quinn

Quinn’s
strategy was largely well-received by the investors and analysts alike who
expressed disappointment in Tucker’s decision to not have offered the role to
Quinn so far.

At
the time of writing, UniCredit is exchanging hands at just over €13 per share
in the stock market that marks almost the same level at which it started the
new year. At $36.46 per share, HSBC is down almost 8% in 2020 so far.

In
terms of market capitalization, HSBC is a drastically bigger bank as compared
to UniCredit. HSBC is currently valued at $760.64 billion while UniCredit is
worth $33.15 billion.