Bob Rubin Finally Leaves CitiGroup- In Ruins

Finally, after assisting in wrecking the firm to which he was recruited as non-executive Chairman not quite ten years ago, with unusual powers, Bob Rubin has resigned.

The nearby chart shows the effects of Rubin's last major act at Citigroup, the hiring of CEO Vikram Pandit. Compared to the S&P500 Index, which suffered its worst year ever, the large money-center bank performed even worse under its novice CEO.

In the Wall Street Journal article this weekend discussing Rubin's gift to his erstwhile shareholders, he is reported as having excused the damage he caused at Citigroup by citing the fact that Alan Greenspan, among others, had failed to forsee the totality of the financial sector crisis which crippled the bank this past year.

Where was the Citigroup board all these years? Didn't they ever consider the losses to shareholders brought on by following Rubin's 'counsel?'

Allegedly, Rubin's letter of resignation expressed his desire to "intensify my engagement with public policy."

Seeing as how Rubin presided over a loss of some 70% in Citigroup's share price over the time he served as chairman, one wonders just what benefits Rubin imagines he now can add to public policy debates.

Instead, one wishes he would have written,

'Because my leadership at Citigroup was so disastrous, my counsel on risk-taking and entering the mortgage finance business so wrong, I have decided to retire permanently from any work, private or public, involving finance. I have clearly caused far more damage than could ever be corrected by my further involvement in this sector, and it is debatable that my future decisions or advice would be any better than that of the last decade.'

But we all know Rubin wrote, nor will express, anything of the kind. Sadly, he may, in fact, go on to badly advise the incoming administration in Washington.