Lloyds Nabs Botin’s Shark-Diving Protege to Fend Off Santander
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Antonio Horta-Osorio, who goes cage-diving with sharks for fun, ran 10 different banks for Chairman Emilio Botin during his 18 years at Banco Santander SA. He may have tired of waiting to take control of the Europe’s second-biggest lender, analysts said.
Horta-Osorio, 46, took a “substantial” pay cut when he gave up his place in Botin’s inner circle to become chief executive officer at Lloyds Banking Group Plc, Chairman Win Bischoff said yesterday when the switch was disclosed. Lloyds, which is 41 percent state-owned, is the U.K.’s biggest mortgage lender.