Dissent Leads to Resignation of Morgan Stanley CEO

Dissent from Morgan Stanley shareholders and departures from top executives have claimed the head of CEO Phillip Purcell. Purcell announced his resignation in a letter this morning:

It has become clear that in light of the continuing personal attacks on me, and the unprecedented level of negative attention our Firm -- and each of you -- has had to endure, that this is the best thing I can do for you, our clients and our shareholders.

The merger of Morgan Stanley with Dean Witter led to protracted infighting between executives of the two firms. Purcell, who came from Main Street retail brokerage house Dean Witter, has been accused of purging the Wall Street investment banking execs from Morgan. Dissatisfication with Purcell's leadership has led to a series of high-level defections from the investment banking side to rivals such as Citigroup, J.P Morgan Chase and Wachovia.