Alpha Bank CEO Kostopoulos Steps Down

It wasn't exactly unexpected, but it certainly is the end of an era. For decades, the Kostopoulos family not only owned Alpha Bank, they also ran it.

Yiannis Kostopoulos, who retired because of the age clause, has served in various positions in the bank since 1973, starting as General Director, way before the bank assumed its current name. E was president of the executive board from 1984 to 1996, CEO until 2005 and CEO from early 2005 until today.

His successor is Vasilios Rapanos, a man with his own banking and financial sector history. Rapanos, who will be serving as the bank's non-executive director, was born in 1947. He got his degree from the Athens School of Economics in 1975, followed by an M.A. from Lakehead University in Canada in 1977 and a PhD from Queen's University in 1982.

He has served as president of the state phone company OTE board, president of the Council of Economic Advisers of the Finance ministry between 2000 and 2004 and almost became Fin Min two years ago.

When Antonis Samaras assumed power as head of a three-party coalition government after the 2012 summer elections, he asked Rapanos to be his non party affiliated Finance minister. Rapanos accepted at first, but three days later he collapsed from fatigue, hospitalized and turned down the PM's offer. Yiannis Stournaras was Samaras' second choice.

His name was not being considered as a potential replacement for Stournaras in the upcoming cabinet reshuffle, according to government sources.