The Financial Post reports in its Friday, March 14, edition that Victor Dodig, chief executive officer of Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, is retiring in October after over a decade in the role. The Post's Naimul Karim writes that Mr. Dodig will be succeeded by Harry Culham, currently leading CIBC's capital markets, who will take over as chief operating officer in April. Mr. Dodig will serve as a special adviser for six months post-retirement. Mr. Dodig is the second CEO of a Big Six Canadian bank to retire this year, following Bharat Masrani of Toronto-Dominion Bank. CIBC has seen strong performance, with its share price peaking in December, and Mr. Dodig's pay rose to $13.6-million last year, the second highest among peers. Some analysts had expected him to stay longer due to this success. RBC analyst Darko Mihelic says: "We are surprised at the announcement. We thought Victor might remain as CEO a couple of years longer." Mr. Dodig, however, said that it was "an honour" to lead CIBC for the past decade. "I am very proud of all that we have accomplished together and believe the time is right to hand the baton to Harry," he said in a release on Thursday.