Deborah "Deb" McWhinney retired from Charles Schwab on Monday. The unexpected decision from the 51-year-old McWhinney caught the industry by surprise and appears to further reinforce the growing consensus that Walt Bettinger is the odd-on successor to Charles Schwab.

Charles Goldman, who had been the chief operating officer for the Schwab Institutional enterprise, will take over McWhinney's duties. Schwab officials also announced that Benjamin Brigeman will head Schwab Investor Services.

Last January, 47-year-old Christoper Dodds also resigned unexpectedly. Both Dodds and McWhinney were seen by many as potential successors to Schwab, who is 68 years old.

Brigeman, the new head of Investor Service, rose through Schwab's ranks on the retirement services side of the business.

In February, Schwab added three officers to its top ranks, including: Goldman, John Clendening and James McCool.

A spokesperson for Schwab told The MFWire that McWhinney resigned for "personal reasons" and not due to health-related issues. According to InvestmentNews, McWhinney survived breast cancer last year.  

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