Weill lays the blame on his successor Prince for big problems at Citigroup
FORMER Citigroup chief executive Sanford Weill has blamed the bank’s recent problems on personnel decisions and blamed his successor, Chuck Prince, for letting its balance sheet balloon and for taking on large risks, according to the New York Times, citing a series of recent interviews.
“One of the major mistakes that I made was my recommending Chuck Prince,” Weill told the paper, referring to his handpicked successor, who headed Citi from 2003 to 2007.
The newspaper reported that Weill and Prince are no longer on speaking terms. Weill, who built Citi into a “supermarket bank” through a series of acquisitions and retired as CEO in
2003 and as chairman in 2006, said Citi’s structure was not to blame for the bank’s woes, saying management failed.
Weill, 76, was being interviewed by the newspaper about the circumstances that led Citigroup into being forced to go to the US government for financial support during the depths of the recent banking crisis. The bank has since repaid some of its loans.