Sean Kavanagh leaves Deutsche Bank for Citi

Loan risk manager takes newly created job as head of credit portfolio management at Citi

Sean Kavanagh, former head of the loan exposure management group (LEMG) at Deutsche Bank, is joining Citi to become head of credit portfolio management.

In the newly created role, Kavanagh will be based in New York and report to Michael Roberts, global head of corporate banking and capital management in Citi’s institutional clients group.

A spokesman for the bank confirms he is due to take up the role at the beginning of 2012.

Kavanagh previously worked within Deutsche Bank’s US credit trading business, in a role involving electronic trading and risk management, according to sources. He had served as the bank’s head of LEMG until April this year, before being replaced by Sean Bates, formerly head of emerging markets credit trading. Under Kavanagh, Deutsche's team was named Credit Portfolio Manager of the Year in 2008, as well as in 2009. Deutsche also won the Risk award in 2006 when Kavanagh was deputy global head.

Kavanagh is currently chairman emeritus of the International Association of Credit Portfolio Managers, having served as the group’s chairman earlier this year and vice-chairman in 2009 and 2010. He joined Deutsche Bank in 2001 to run the credit derivatives hedging practice of the international investment-grade lending business and was first appointed head of LEMG in 2005.