Activist HoldCo pressures KeyCorp to remove its CEO

HoldCo Asset Management, which is pressuring several regional banks, is now urging KeyCorp in Cleveland to oust Chairman and CEO Chris Gorman.

The activist investor, which owns about 0.7% of Key’s stock, said in a board presentation made publicly available that it also wants the company to adopt a “no acquisitions” policy and direct all excess capital toward share repurchases, among other things.

HoldCo indicated it is evaluating other avenues, including a proxy battle or a push for the company to find a buyer.

Some of HoldCo’s demands overlap with matters Key has already begun to address. At a conference last month, management signaled a faster pace of buybacks and reiterated that M&A is a low priority.

Last year, KeyCorp used funds from selling a nearly 15% stake to Scotiabank to aggressively purge its securities portfolio.

HoldCo, meanwhile, has been a gadfly in recent months to the boards and leadership teams at Comerica, Columbia Banking System, First Interstate BancSystem and others.