Barclays has announced another major restructuring of its Wall Street operations, marking a retreat from CEO CS Venkatakrishnan's earlier management experiment. The bank said Mike Joo from Bank of America will join Adeel Khan as co-chief of its investment bank from February, replacing the four-person leadership structure installed less than three years ago. The overhaul leaves Khan as the sole remaining member of Venkatakrishnan's original quartet.

The previous four-person leadership model was controversial from the start, with internal complaints about dispersed decision-making and lack of accountability. Tensions arose between co-heads Cathal Deasy and Taylor Wright, who had different visions for reviving the investment bank. Both are expected to leave when Joo joins early next year.

Barclays' investment bank has undergone numerous iterations since acquiring Lehman Brothers' US operations in 2008 for $250 million. Under Venkatakrishnan, the bank shifted focus from volatile investment banking to stable retail banking and wealth management. The unit lost 25% of its M&A managing directors between 2023 and 2024, with revenues from fixed-income and equities trading increasing 90% and 58% respectively since 2018.

Despite a stronger start to 2026 with advisory fees up 67%, the investment bank continues facing challenges in generating consistent returns through market cycles.