UniCredit plans to expand its retail and investment-banking operations in central and eastern Europe, chief executive Federico Ghizzoni said in an interview, brushing aside pressure from top Italian shareholders to make retail banking in Italy the lender's priority.

Ghizzoni's comments follow months of scrutiny over the bank's strategy that resulted in the board ousting UniCredit's architect and former chief executive, Alessandro Profumo last month. UniCredit's top Italian shareholders had feuded with Profumo over his courtship of Libyan capital and his strategy of expanding into central and eastern Europe.