For a mortgage bank to pull back on mortgage lending in the midst of a housing boom is indeed a radical decision and not one to find favour with the majority of bank equity analysts. But that is what the boss of the UK's Abbey bank - part of Spain's Santander group - did as his first major decision within three months of taking on the role of CEO.
With a 20% price correction coming in the UK's overheated property market about 18 months down the line, it turned out to be one of the most significant decisions António Horta-Osório has made in a 20-year career.