Chairman of Commercial International Bank Hisham Ezz al-Arab is stepping down under orders from the central bank. The decision to have the chairman step down from his roles stems from compliance concerns. The bank has already approved his successor’s appointment.
Sherif Samy, who was appointed as the bank’s non-executive chairman, told the media, “We met yesterday with the people concerned with the file in the central bank. A lengthy discussion took place on the conclusions of (the) inspection and the violations they contained and to explore central bank directives to strengthen a number of aspects of compliance and internal control.”
Commercial International Bank is the biggest listed bank in Egypt. It currently has 207 branches and serves 1.4 million customers, media reports said. It is reported that the bank has received a notification from the central bank informing its decision to discharge Ezz al-Arab from his leadership role. The decision comes under the new banking law which was passed this year.
The bank said in a statement that “In view of the current situation with the Central Bank of Egypt, I have decided the time has come to end my journey with CIB.” The central bank said that the Commercial International Bank will have to formulate an immediate corrective plan and it would closely monitor the situation.
It is reported that the bank’s shares had been suspended from trading following a request from the Financial Regulatory Authority. The bank has slumped after the chairman stepped down over concerns regarding governance.