National Bank of Abu Dhabi chief steps down

Alex Thursby has stepped down as Group CEO of National Bank of Abu Dhabi.

Alex Thursby has stepped down as Group CEO of National Bank of Abu Dhabi (NBAD), the UAE's second biggest lender by assets, ahead of its planned merger with First Gulf Bank (FGB) in coming months.

Abhijit Choudhury, NBAD's group chief risk officer, has been appointed as acting CEO with immediate effect. He will work closely with deputy group CEO Abdulla M.S. AbdulRaheem to lead the bank until the completion of the proposed merger with FGB, which is scheduled for the first quarter of 2017.

Abdulhamid M. Saeed, a seasoned banker who is the current managing director of FGB, was announced on July 3 as the CEO designate of NBAD. He is due to take up this position on completion of the merger.

On Monday, it was announced that Khalifa Sultan Al Suwaidi, who is currently a member of NBAD's board of directors, will take on the newly created position of managing director to support the bank through the integration planning process until the merger completes.

Nasser Ahmed Alsowaidi, chairman of NBAD, praised Thursby for his leadership. "Under his guidance, the bank has transformed into a modern, well-regarded, customer-oriented and results-focused financial institution," the chairman said.

"NBAD approaches the merger with FGB in a strong financial and risk position, recognised as the safest bank in emerging markets and the highest-rated bank in the UAE. I am confident Abhijit Choudhury will lead the bank successfully through the integration planning process in the coming months, drawing on his decade of experience at NBAD," Alsowaidi added.

Thursby, who led the financial institution for over three years, said: "I leave the bank in a very strong position to make a success of the merger and thrive in an increasingly competitive landscape. With the planning for NBAD's integration with FGB under way, this is the right moment to hand over the reins to Abhijit Choudhury and a senior team that will plan for the merger. It is important that there is alignment between the decisions being taken during integration planning and their implementation after the merger is legally completed."

- haseeb@khaleejtimes.com