Dubai: Rick Pudner, the chief executive officer of Emirates NBD, will leave his position when his term expires at the end of this year, the bank said yesterday.
Pudner has been with the bank, Dubai’s largest, for over seven years. The bank did not give any additional reasons for Pudner’s departure.
“Then, he will hand over the role to a new leader as part of the succession planning process and the organisation’s strategy for change and transformation,” an Emirates NBD spokesperson said in an emailed statement on Sunday, adding that Pudner had contributed to all the achievements of the bank, including the completion of one of the largest mergers in the region, overcoming one of the most difficult financial crisis that hit the world and the takeover and integration of Dubai Bank.
During his tenure, Pudner oversaw the merger between Emirates Bank International and National Bank of Dubai, to form Emirates NBD. And prior to joining Emirates NBD, he worked with HSBC for more than 24 years.
Pudner’s exit comes shorty after the appointment of Alex Thursby earlier this month as chief executive of National Bank of Abu Dhabi, the UAE’s second-biggest lender by assets. Thursby succeeds Michael Tomalin, who retires after 14 years in the job.
Emirates NBD is expected to report its first-quarter earnings on Thursday. The lender saw its fourth-quarter net profit more than triple on the back of lower impairments.
The bank is also close to completing a $500 million (Dh1.8 billion) purchase of BNP Paribas’ Egyptian assets.
