GE CFO to head finance unit: WSJ

General Electric Co Chief Financial Officer Keith Sherin is poised to head the company's finance unit, the Wall Street Journal said on Friday, citing people familiar with the matter.

Sherin will take over from GE Capital CEO Michael Neal, who has been at the helm for eight years, as early as this summer, the paper said.

GE spokesman Seth Martin told Reuters that the company doesn't speculate on future scenarios, adding "Mike Neal is an excellent leader of GE Capital".

The Journal reported last month that the diversified company was looking for successors to Neal, citing sources.

The conglomerate has been focusing on shrinking its financial business since the 2007-2008 global economic crisis. It has offloaded several assets held by GE Capital to reduce its dependence on the unit.

(Reporting by Mridhula Raghavan in Bangalore)