Standard Chartered CFO resigns to switch jobs, impacting stock price continues to fall. Analysis: In the past, he brought multiple increases to the group and had a transformative impact

Standard Chartered (2888) suddenly announced yesterday (10th) that Chief Financial Officer Diego De Giorgi has left immediately. On the same day, Apollo Global Management, an alternative asset management giant listed in the United States, announced the appointment of De Giorgi as the head of Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. Affected by the sudden departure of the CFO, the stock dropped more than 6% in the afternoon yesterday, closing down 1.9%; its London share price fell further last night, dropping as much as 5.7%. The decline continued today (11th), with Standard Chartered's Hong Kong stock dropping as much as 2.8% in the early session, closing down 0.9% at HKD 196.2. Major bank Goldman Sachs issued a report stating that this personnel change was unexpected and raised concerns about the succession plan of CEO Bill Winters. Goldman Sachs' research report indicated that investors reacted negatively to De Giorgi's departure, mainly because the appointment came quite suddenly. The bank's analysis pointed out that De Giorgi played a core role in the bank's transformation plan implemented in recent years, and the investor reaction showed that this appointment was unexpected. Goldman Sachs further stated that with De Giorgi's departure, investors' focus will shift to CEO Bill Winters' potential succession plan and the corporate strategy announcement scheduled for May this year. De Giorgi's Departure is a Heavy Blow to Standard Chartered Jefferies analyst Joseph Dickerson pointed out that De Giorgi's departure is a "particularly heavy blow" for Standard Chartered Bank. He stated that De Giorgi was not only a core driver of the "Fit for Growth" plan but also had a transformative impact on investor communication over the past few years, helping to enhance stock price valuation multiples. Data shows that since Diego De Giorgi took office in January 2024, the stock price has more than doubled, reaching approximately 235%. Morningstar analyst Chan stated that Peter Burrill, who has been appointed as the interim Group CFO, has extensive experience and is a suitable candidate for the temporary position. Chan pointed out that given the bank's short-term focus on completing the restructuring plan, Burrill is expected to continue achieving established goals, with limited impact on operations. This should provide the bank with breathing space to calmly search for a suitable permanent candidate. Diego De Giorgi took office as Group CFO of Standard Chartered in January 2024 and was seen as a potential candidate to succeed Bill Winters as Group CEO in the future. As for Peter Burrill, who is taking over De Giorgi's position and is 54 years old, he will report directly to Group CEO Bill Winters. He is currently the Group Chief Financial Officer and Deputy CFO of Standard Chartered. Before joining Standard Chartered in 2017, Pete served as Group Director and Co-Head of Group Finance at Deutsche Bank. His career began at KPMG, where he worked for nearly twenty years, including ten years in the United States and the subsequent ten years stationed in Germany