OANDA Looking for a New CEO as Vatsa Narasimha Steps Down

OANDA just confirmed to Finance Magnates that the firm is on the lookout for a new CEO. After serving as CEO of the retail broker for a little over two years, Vatsa Narasimha is leaving his position.

Commenting to Finance Magnates, a spokesperson stated that Narasimha will be moving from his full-time position as CEO and will continue to serve on the OANDA Board as a non-executive director.

The company is now commencing a search for a new CEO only about half a year since its acquisition by CVC Capital Partners. The firm has been ongoing a reorganization in recent months and shifting the composition of its board.

The company welcomed the former CEO of IG Group Tim Howkins in the final quarter of last year. With the ongoing transformation of the industry, the challenges retail brokers are facing are increasing.

The company is one of the major players in the US, a market which recently has become more competitive after IG Group became the first brokerage to enter the space since the dawn of the Great Financial Crisis of 2008.

Since joining the firm as Chief Strategy Officer in 2013, Narasimha was quick to move up the ranks at OANDA. Just over three years after joining he was promoted to lead the firm as CEO after serving as Chief Strategy Officer and CFO.

In an interview in August 2018, the now-former CEO of OANDA said that the company is on the lookout for acquisitions. To date, the company hasn't officially announced any broker companies that fit into its plans.

That said, with the material financial backing of CVC, the company might be merely looking forward to the increasing pressure on the industry to play out to favor more attractive valuations across the retail brokerage space.