Activist HoldCo Pivots on KeyCorp, Now Supports CEO Gorman

Activist investor HoldCo Asset Management called a truce with two US regional banks and said it now supports KeyCorp’s chief executive officer after previously calling for his ouster.

HoldCo won’t pursue proxy fights it had threatened against KeyCorp or Eastern Bankshares Inc., it said Monday at the UBS Financial Services Conference in Key Biscayne, Florida.

In December, HoldCo asked KeyCorp’s board to swear off buying other banks and instead use excess capital to repurchase shares. It also said the Cleveland-based bank should terminate CEO Christopher Gorman and not renominate the board’s lead independent director.

KeyCorp CEO Christopher Gorman

Photographer: Victor J. Blue/Bloomberg

Gorman said in December ...