Deutsche Boerse taps top banker as new CEO

German stock market operator Deutsche Boerse named a top banker as its new chief executive Thursday, after his predecessor resigned under a cloud of insider trading allegations.

Deutsche Boerse tapped German Theodor Weimer, chief executive at Munich-based Hypovereinsbank -- a subsidiary of Italy's Unicredit -- to take the helm from January for a three-year contract.

Weimer, 57, has run Hypovereinsbank since 2009, cutting the lender's branch network by half and refocusing on investment banking.

Like predecessor Carsten Kenegeter, the new CEO has a background in investment banking at Goldman Sachs, making him a good fit in Deutsche Boerse's search for deep knowledge of capital markets.

Kengeter agreed last month to step down at the end of 2017, dogged by insider trading charges linked to the group's unsuccessful bid to merge with the London Stock Exchange.

Both he and Deutsche Boerse insisted he was innocent of any wrongdoing.

Like other firms based in Germany's financial capital Frankfurt, Deutsche Boerse stands to benefit from Britain's decision to quit the EU as banks move parts of their operations away from the City of London.

Source: AFP