Wachovia Ousts CEO

Wachovia Corp, the fourth-largest U.S. bank, said today it ousted CEO Ken Thompson, following a series of disappointments including an ill-fated purchase of a big mortgage lender at the height of the nation's housing boom.

The Charlotte, N.C.-based company said Thompson is retiring at the request of its board of directors.

Lanty Smith, who replaced Thompson as chairman last month, was named interim chief executive.

Ben Jenkins, the vice chairman and head of Wachovia's retail and business bank, was named interim chief operating officer.

In the statement, Smith said "a series of previously disclosed disappointments and setbacks cumulatively have negatively impacted the company and its performance. The board believes new leadership will help to revitalize and reenergize Wachovia, and enable it to realize its potential."

None of the executives was immediately available for further comment, according to a Reuters news report. Thompson joins a growing list of top banking chief executives to lose their jobs since the global credit crisis began last summer, including Citigroup's Charles Prince and Stanley O'Neal, formerly of Merrill Lynch.

Increasing loan losses pushed Wachovia in April to raise $8.05 billion in capital. It cut its dividend, posted a first-quarter loss that it later nearly doubled to $708 million, and disclosed up to $1.14 billion of costs for legal and regulatory problems.