The Black Business Council (BBC) said that it was disappointed that Absa had chosen to appoint another white chief executive as interim CEO after Arrie Rautenbach decided to leave the bank prematurely.
The BBC said it hoped the bank would have appointed a black person as its interim CEO instead.
On Monday, Absa said that Rautenbach would vacate his position two and half years before his contract was up and would take an early retirement package.
“Following engagements between the board and Arrie Rautenbach, Absa group CEO, the parties have agreed that (Rautenbach) will take early retirement from the group, effective April 15, 2025,” Absa said in a statement.
Absa announced Charles Russon would takeover an interim CEO of the Absa Group and Absa Bank effective October 15, 2024, subject to regulatory approval.
Russon will also become an executive director on Absa’s boards. He currently is head of the group’s corporate and investment banking (CIB) unit. This role will fall to Yasmin Masithela when Russon becomes interim CEO.
The appointment of Russon demonstrated, in clear terms, that Absa did not have a proper succession strategy or plan that included a pipeline of possible succession candidates, the BBC said.
The BBC has now called on the Absa leadership to ensure that the permanent replacement of Rautenbach is not a white male or anyone from the groups that are overrepresented as per the Employment Equity report.
“The revolving door of white CEOs at Absa is very worrying to the BBC and other progressive institutions that embrace transformation, as Absa is a very important institution in the economy and the lives of South Africans.
A failure of confidence?
Last month, the ‘Sunday Times’ reported that Rautenbach allegedly "broke down" during a conference with Absa’s senior leaders.
It was reported that during the meeting, a number of Absa executives said they had lost confidence in him and his ability to lead and wanted a black African CEO.
Absa called out the Sunday Times report, saying it was a “malicious and sensational distortion” of what really happened at the conference of around 250 leaders.
When Rautenbach took over the role of CEO, he replaced Daniel Mminele, who stepped down. Mminele was Absa’s first black CEO.
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