Citigroup CEO Prince to resign: reports

By Dan Wilchins and Jonathan Stempel

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Citigroup Inc Chief Executive Charles Prince plans to resign this weekend, the Wall Street Journal said, as the widening subprime mortgage crisis deals a final blow to a reign long under attack.

The largest U.S. bank by assets plans to hold an emergency board meeting on Sunday, at which Prince will step down, the newspaper said on Friday, citing people familiar with the situation.

Citigroup spokesman Michael Hanretta declined to comment. Prince did not immediately return a call to his office.

Speculation that Prince would soon leave the bank had swirled for weeks after a $6.5 billion third-quarter write-down fed fears of more losses to come, dragging Citigroup's shares to a 4-1/2-year low.

Directors at Sunday's meeting are also expected to discuss the possibility of another large write-down, The New York Times said. A search committee would be formed to find a successor to Prince, the newspaper said, citing people close to the board.

"Prince had told investors this would be the year of no excuses. It unfolded into a year of lots of excuses," said Thomas Russo, a partner at Gardner Russo & Gardner in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, which invests more than $3 billion and owns Citigroup shares.

Citigroup stock is down 32 percent this year, and fell 78 cents to $37.73 in Friday trading. They rose to $39.01 after-hours as reports of impending Prince's exit surfaced. The cost of protecting the company's debt against default has shot up to levels that imply the bank's credit ratings should be cut.

Prince's departure would be the second of a top Wall Street executive in less than a week. On Tuesday, Merrill Lynch & Co ousted Chief Executive Stan O'Neal after an $8.4 billion write-down.