(China Daily)
Updated: 2007-12-13 14:15

Wall Street has spent weeks trying to predict who would take on one of the highest profile jobs in global finance.

Putative candidates had included American International Group Chairman and former Citi Chief Operating Officer Robert Willumstad, Barclays President Bob Diamond, and Wells Fargo Chairman Richard Kovacevich.

Pandit needs to restore investor confidence in Citigroup. In recent months, there has been growing concern among investors that Citi is too big and should be broken up.

Citi said in November that it faced up to $11 billion in fourth-quarter losses tied to mortgage investments. The company reported $6.4 billion in third-quarter write-downs and could face more losses from home loans and credit cards.

In November, the company sold a $7.5 billion stake to Abu Dhabi to shore up its capital base.

Related readings:  Citigroup reported to layoff 45,000 employees  Citigroup's prince resigns as CEO  Citigroup CEO resigns; interim named

Pandit said his top priorities include improving productivity, allocating capital and resources better and simplifying the bank's structure.

Pandit said he would undertake a full review of Citi's businesses, though he declined to set a time frame for when he would announce results.

Born in Nagpur, India, and with three degrees from Columbia University, Pandit joined Morgan Stanley in 1983. He rose through the ranks to become president of institutional securities.

At the same time, he was criticized by some insiders for being too conservative about taking trading and lending risks.

Pandit quit Morgan Stanley in April 2005 after former CEO Phil Purcell named Steve Crawford and Zoe Cruz as co-presidents over Pandit. He set up Old Lane, a hedge fund and private equity investment firm, with other Morgan alumni.

Citi bought Old Lane and made Pandit head of a small unit for alternative investments, but from the start he was considered a likely successor to Prince.

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