After Huber’s departure, a new boss is being sought again

He was the complete opposite of Pierin Vincenz, the dazzling Raiffeisen boss and star banker. Today, the Graubünden man is fighting for his remaining reputation in court after convictions and overturning of verdicts.

But Heinz Huber was also the opposite of his first Raiffeisen president, Guy Lachapelle. He also had to quickly leave the largest cooperative banking group. He had stumbled upon a love affair. Previously, his presidential salary was also discussed.

What makes Heinz Huber special

Heinz Huber, on the other hand, is considered a quiet, well-connected creator. As a team player. As a player-coach.

After completing a banking apprenticeship at UBS, he worked his way up to the top position at Thurgauer Kantonalbank (TKB) for many years before, surprisingly to many, he was chosen as the new leader of Raiffeisen Switzerland. In between, he was still active in business, as a member of the management of the global IT company Dicom Group and as the founder and managing director of Sydoc, an SME in information management.

Not much more is publicly known about the now sixty-year-old. And that was right for his employer and especially for all the cooperative members in the country. They prefer to read headlines about business successes, such as the one about the jump to third place.

Successor for the fallen Graubünden KB president

Now, shortly before retirement, Heinz Huber Knall is withdrawing from operational business, as Raiffeisen announced on Thursday morning. He will leave the Raiffeisen leadership position in just two weeks. Then in June he started working life again as President of the Bank Council of the Graubündner Kantonalbank (GKB).

The abrupt departure fuels speculation – including about whether Huber had to leave. After all, it has only been four months since he emphasized to the “Handelszeitung”: “Resignation is not an issue for me.” He “really enjoys working” at Raiffeisen and “enjoys driving the development of this banking group forward together with the employees.” Now this is obviously no longer desired – whether by Raiffeisen or by Huber himself. In any case, the outgoing boss does not want to comment on his departure, as he told CH Media.

There are many indications that Huber’s departure took place at relatively short notice. One indication of this is that CFO Christian Poerschke now has to step in on an interim basis – and there is no definitive successor yet. According to its own information, the Raiffeisen Board of Directors has now “initiated” the succession process.

Huber also has experience with hasty job changes: he also made one at the end of 2018 when he left the Thurgauer Kantonalbank in favor of the Raiffeisen Group. At the time, the TKB bank council ostensibly put a good face on the bad game, but behind the scenes the members confirmed that they had resented Huber’s quick departure.

This is how the new job suits Huber

What is also exciting is who Huber will inherit in Graubünden: Peter Fanconi, who was actually elected for a third term as Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Cantonal Bank until 2026, but had to announce his early resignation in July.

Fanconi recently came under pressure in connection with the controversial lending of his cantonal bank to the now collapsed Austrian real estate group Signa owned by investor René Benko. However, a test report exonerated Fanconi on this issue. Accordingly, the canton of Graubünden would also like to thank its outgoing cantonal bank president “for his many years of valuable and successful work”.

However, as history shows, Heinz Huber is very familiar with illustrious predecessors. And so he shouldn’t be tempted to attract attention in his new position.

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