Pierre Mariani, an executive at BNP Paribas, will become the new chief executive of Franco-Belgian bank Dexia, Belgian Prime Minister Yves Leterme said Tuesday, reports Reuters. Former Belgian premier, Jean-Luc Dehaene, would become chairman of the group, Leterme said in announcing a first step toward shoring up Dexia after its shares fell to a record low on Monday. France and Belgium, part of a €6.4bn ($8.7bn) public bailout of the bank a week ago, had agreed to the appointments. They also will need the approval of Dexia’s board and other key shareholders. Mariani, 52, is co-head of retail banking and chief of international retail services at BNP, and would replace Belgian Axel Miller who tendered his resignation last week. Leterme on Monday promised measures to address what he described as a “temporary problem” at Dexia. The bank’s shares closed down 21% at €6.74 after earlier plunging 30%.
