UPDATE: This story includes additional information about Kedia’s background. Check back for additional updates.
U.S. Bancorp has picked Gunjan Kedia to be its next chief executive officer, succeeding Andy Cecere, who will retire as CEO in April, the Minneapolis-based bank announced Tuesday.
Kedia, who has been Cecere’s heir apparent since May when she was promoted to company president, will take over as CEO following the company’s annual shareholders meeting on April 15, U.S. Bancorp said in a press release. Cecere, who is also chairman of the board, will shift into the role of executive chairman.
Kedia, 54, will be the first woman to run U.S. Bancorp and one of just two women CEOs at one of the nation’s 50 largest banks. Jane Fraser has been CEO of Citigroup since 2021.
Kedia was ranked No. 4 on American Banker’s 2024 Most Powerful Women in Banking list.
“We are inspired by Gunjan’s vision for the company, and we are confident in her ability to guide U.S. Bancorp into a vibrant and engaging future that honors the past while achieving new possibilities,” Roland Hernandez, U.S. Bancorp’s lead independent director, said in the release.
Kedia, an engineer by training, has been one of the highest-ranking executives at U.S. Bancorp since she joined the $678 billion-asset company in 2016 as vice chair of wealth management and investment services. In 2023, her role was expanded to include leadership of the bank’s corporate and commercial banking division as part of a series of leadership changes at the time.
As president, she has been overseeing all three of the company’s core businesses — consumer and business banking, payment services and wealth, corporate, commercial and institutional banking. Combined, the businesses employ 38,000 people in the U.S., Canada and Europe.
