CIT taps former Citizens Financial exec as CFO

CIT Group has a new chief financial officer.

The Livingston, N.J., company said in a press release Thursday that it had named John Fawcett to the post. He will succeed Carol Hayles, who has been CFO for two years and is stepping down to “pursue other opportunities,” the release said.

Fawcett is set to join CIT on April 17 as an adviser and report to Ellen Alemany. He is expected to officially take over as CFO in early May.

Daniel Acker/Bloomberg

Fawcett most recently served as CFO at Citizens Financial in Providence, R.I., where he played a key role in the $117 billion-asset company’s initial public offering in 2014 — and eventual separation from Royal Bank of Scotland. He retired from Citizens in 2015, after eight years as CFO. Before joining Citizens, he worked for two decades at Citigroup.

Alemany was Citizens' chief executive for six years, until stepping down in 2013, shortly before the IPO.

“John will be a key partner to me and the management team as we continue to advance our strategic plans and grow our core businesses,” Alemany said in the release.

CIT is in the midst of a turnaround, as it sheds financing units and focuses primarily on traditional commercial banking. In April the $64 billion-asset company completed the sale of its $10 billion-asset commercial aircraft division.