(Reuters) -Charles Schwab said on Tuesday that President Rick Wurster will succeed long-time CEO Walt Bettinger as its next chief executive, paving the way for a change of guard at the brokerage firm after 16 years.
Bettinger, who became CEO in late 2008, will retire from his role at the end of the year but continue as the executive co-chair of the board, the company said.
The CEO transition comes at a time when elevated interest rates have made deposits and debt costly, pressuring the brokerage firm’s earnings in its most recent quarter.
Schwab’s shares have fallen nearly 6% this year even amid a rally in equities.
Under Bettinger, Schwab grew its market capitalization to $119 billion from $18 billion at the end of 2008. Client assets also grew more than eight times over the same period.
Bettinger oversaw the company’s blockbuster $26 billion acquisition of TD Ameritrade and eliminated commissions on trading, a move that helped it win more retail clients.
Wurster, the incoming CEO, joined Schwab in early 2016. Prior to that, he held leadership roles at asset manager Wellington Management and management consulting firm McKinsey, where he was a leader of the asset management practice and an associate principal.
Schwab’s shares were marginally down before the bell on Tuesday.
(Reporting by Niket Nishant in Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta)
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