M&G chief investment officer Jack Daniels will retire from the business next June, becoming the latest member of its top brass to step down.
Daniels (pictured) has spent the bulk of his 35-year career at the FTSE 100 fund manager, having joined in 2001. In 2019, he stepped up to become CIO ahead of M&G’s de-merger from its insurance parent Prudential. Last year, he took on additional responsibilities as managing director of asset management, following a leadership reshuffle.
His departure comes amid a changing of the guard at the £370bn asset manager. Chief executive John Foley announced in April he would be retiring from the business after more than two decades and earlier this year global head of distribution Jonathan Willcocks confirmed he would be bowing out. Foley is to remain in place until a successor is chosen.
After a difficult few years since listing as a separate entity in October 2019, M&G has begun to see a turnaround. Shares in the business shot up, following news it would launch a £500m share buyback programme after meeting its financial targets ahead of schedule.
In 2021, it stemmed the tide of outflows, bringing in £600m of net client cash compared to £6.6bn of net outflows in 2020. However, its UK retail funds business still leaked £3.8bn last year.
Commenting on Daniels’ departure Foley said: “Since becoming CIO in 2019, Jack has been instrumental in our investment teams delivering strong performance for our clients and enabling M&G to maintain its reputation for active investment across both public and private asset classes. Jack will remain in role until June next year to ensure a smooth handover of responsibilities.”
