Bank has announced its boss is to step down
The chief executive of The Co-operative Bank is to step down after just a year and a half in the role.
Liam Coleman is leaving the position following five years at the bank and the completion of its £700m recapitalisation process last year which saved it from potential collapse.
Coleman only took the top post in January last year after serving as treasurer, director of its retail and commercial bank and later as deputy CEO.
The announcement comes just months after the Manchester based bank appointed Bob Dench as chairman, replacing Dennis Holt.
Coleman said: “As a member of the team originally brought in to help turn the bank around, I feel a great sense of achievement in how much we have collectively delivered both to address the fundamental issues the organisation faced back in 2013 and to reshape the business around our retail customers.
“This is a great bank with a strong customer base and distinct brand and the progress made means there is much to build upon. However, having successfully completed the recapitalisation process last year, I feel it is now both the right time for me and for the business to look to new leadership for the next stage of the journey. In the meantime though it remains very much business as usual in delivering on our plans and the level of service our customers expect of us.”
Dench added: “Under Liam’s tenure the bank is stronger and more resilient on many levels having also completed the outsourcing of our major IT systems to IBM; continued to significantly de-risk the balance sheet; and substantially reduce our cost base. The achievements have provided the platform to move forward with our plans to achieve a sustainable and profitable Co-operative Bank. I would like to thank Liam on behalf of the board for his significant contribution.”
He added: “Our priority for the next phase is further to rebuild the bank’s competitiveness as a genuine alternative for customers.”
A successor has yet to be announced, but the bank assured that it was “mindful of the need to manage an orderly succession”.
