Who Will Be the Next CEO of First Niagara?

Let the wild speculation begin.

Shortly after First Niagara Financial Group (FNFG) in Buffalo, N.Y., announced Tuesday that John Koelmel was out as chief executive, commentators and observers began offering some high-profile names as potential successors.

Thomas K. Brown, head of Second Curve Capital, a hedge fund focused on financial services, suggested three on Bankstocks.com: Al de Molina, formerly CEO of GMAC (now Ally Financial) and chief financial officer of Bank of America (BAC); Cathy Nash, chief executive of Citizens Republic Bancorp (CRBC) in Flint, Mich., which under her direction turned itself around and is now selling to FirstMerit (FMER) in Akron, Ohio; and Brad Warner, who ran retail operations for the old Fleet Bank.

Most experts declined to speculate on the record, but private conversations yielded a handful of other possible names.

Peyton Patterson, the former chief executive of NewAlliance Bancshares and current CEO of BNC Financial Group (BNCN), is viewed as a natural candidate because First Niagara acquired NewAlliance in 2010. Yet she has mainly run thrifts and First Niagara converted to a national bank in 2010, some analysts noted.

First Niagara's search committee might find its answer close by, one analyst said, because M&T Bank, also in Buffalo, employs some ready candidates.

M&T is headed by Robert G. Wilmers, 78. Vice Chairman Michael Pinto, President Mark Czarnecki and Chief Financial Officer Rene Jones are said to be in the running for Wilmers' job when he retires. One of them could decide to move over to First Niagara instead.

"It is a horserace to succeed Wilmers at M&T," the analyst said. "Any of those three guys would be likely candidates. They wouldn’t have to move and how often does a CEO job at an in-market bank that has $37 billion in assets come open up?"

First Niagara, the 43rd largest bank in terms of assets, announced Koelmel's departure Tuesday. He made a series of deals that failed to turn the pumped-up company into an earnings powerhouse.

It has appointed Gary Crosby, its chief administrative and operating officer, as interim president and CEO, while a special committee of independent directors searches for a permanent replacement. Crosby is set to receive a $1 million payout when his interim role ends.