Barclays Indian American Executive C.S. Venkatakrishnan Takes Over as CEO

C.S. Venkatakrishnan, head of global markets for the bank, will take over as chief executive. Barclays said succession planning has been in place for some time, and the Indian American executive had been identified as the preferred candidate more than a year ago. (Barclays photo)

India-West Staff Reporter

The chief executive of British bank Barclays, Jes Staley, stepped down Nov. 1 following a report by United Kingdom regulators into his past links with the late financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, according to an Associated Press report.

C.S. Venkatakrishnan, head of global markets for the bank, will take over as chief executive. Barclays said succession planning has been in place for some time, and the Indian American executive had been identified as the preferred candidate more than a year ago.

Staley has previously said he “deeply regrets” his relationship with Epstein, who killed himself at a federal jail in New York in August 2019 while awaiting a sex trafficking trial. There is no suggestion that the 64-year-old Staley knew anything about Epstein’s alleged crimes.

Prior to his appointment as Group CEO, Venkatakrishnan (“Venkat”) was head of Global Markets, co-president of Barclays Bank PLC, and a member of the Group Executive Committee of Barclays, based in New York. He has also served as Chief Risk Officer at Barclays, according to Barclays.

Prior to joining Barclays in 2016, he worked at JP Morgan Chase from 1994, holding senior roles in Asset Management where he was Chief Investment Officer for approximately $200 billion in global fixed income, as well as in investment Banking, and in risk.

Venkat is the executive sponsor for Embrace, the global multi-cultural network at Barclays.

He holds B.S., M.S. and Ph.D. degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

(With AP reports)