The current chief executive is leaving to pursue other opportunities outside the bank.

Kleinwort Hambros, the UK-based private bank, has appointed a new chief executive from its own ranks to take over from John Maitland, who has decided to move on.

Mouhammed Choukeir, who is deputy CEO and chief investment officer, is taking on the CEO slot, subject to clearance from regulators. 

“Since the integration of Kleinwort Benson and SGPB Hambros, Kleinwort Hambros has focused on strengthening its business through strategic hires, enhancing its client proposition, and expanding its digital capabilities. The business has also focused on strategic growth through its Business Acquisition Group whose aim is to generate new business leads,” the firm said in a statement today. 

Maitland became CEO in July 2018 after joining the bank in 2011. Since then, he has led the bank forward by building the solid foundations which have now positioned Kleinwort Hambros for the next stage of its strategic development.

“Kleinwort Hambros is a key strategic pillar of the Societe Generale Private Banking network and benefits from a deep pool of talent and strong client base. Our ambition is to keep growing our business by enriching our product offer and digital services for the benefit of our clients,” Patrick Folléa, head of Societe Generale Private Banking, said.

Before joining Kleinwort Hambros, Choukeir was head of the multi-asset class business at Morgan Stanley, where he managed money for clients in Europe, the Middle East and Asia. He spent his early career in the fixed income division of Citigroup’s investment bank in New York, London and Madrid. He is also a board member for several charities.

In June 2016, Societe Generale acquired Kleinwort Benson from Oddo et Cie and merged Kleinwort Benson with its existing private banking subsidiary SG Hambros in November 2016 to form Kleinwort Hambros. 

(Editor’s note: The appointment of Choukeir, an investment professional, as CEO highlights how the bank puts investment prowess front and centre of its business, and a focus on rebuilding wealth after the ravages of the COVID-19 pandemic is bound to be a major goal for this and other private banks in coming months.)