The chief executive of Unicredit, Italy's largest bank, said Friday that the lender would retain a major international presence following the dramatic ouster of his predecessor in a row over management.

"We confirm our strong presence on the Italian market ... and our strong presence in the 22 countries in which we are present," Federico Ghizzoni, who was named to replace Alessandro Profumo on Thursday, said at a news conference.

Referring to central and eastern Europe, a region where the bank has expanded hugely in recent years, he said he intended "to continue to grow and consolidate our presence in a very important region."

But he added that there could be some "slight" changes in the bank's strategy in the region, such as a greater concentration on the larger countries in the area including Poland, Russia and Turkey.

The bank's chairman, Dieter Rampl, said that Ghizzoni was "the strongest guarantee of continuity," adding: "We are an international bank based in Italy. We have been this in the past and we are going to be this in the future."

Profumo led the bank from 1997 and was pushed out by shareholders last month following months of tension over poor earnings, his management style and the emergence of Libya as the bank's biggest stakeholder.