John Cryan will have to hit the ground running at Deutsche Bank when he officially starts as chief executive on June 29. Investors want to see the former investment banker tackle a long list of problems that has pushed Germany's largest bank into a management crisis.
"Cryan needs to win back investor confidence, work through new details of the group's strategic plan and above all, bring back a semblance of order," said portfolio manager Helmut Hipper at Union Investment, a top-20 investor in Deutsche.
Deutsche Bank was shaken after its two co-chief executives quit following a string of regulatory run-ins, failed promises and a shareholder vote of no confidence.
Those who know him say Cryan, who faces a self-imposed deadline of July 30 to publish details of the bank's new strategic plan, will work fast to attempt to steady Deutsche's fortunes.
The bank's shares have risen only 5 percent in the three years since Anshu Jain and Juergen Fitschen were appointed co-CEOs, while by comparison JP Morgan has more than doubled and UBS has risen 83 percent.
"There will be a ton of firings, cost cutting, a massive increase in competence and a general acceleration of restructuring," said one of his former colleagues on condition of anonymity. "The hype around him is not exaggerated." But the list of problems is long.
Deutsche Bank is plagued with fines and investigations, suffers high operating costs and militant unions, and faces huge investments to modernise technology and restructure.
The group is also saddled with a sprawling investment bank that it nurtured in sharp contrast to cutbacks at rivals such as Credit Suisse and Barclays.
One insider said the Briton is likely to accelerate reforms, slash investment banking activities to free up capital and tighten governance. But he is unlikely to reverse strategy or call for more equity capital, the insider said.