M&G chief executive John Foley retires

Foley steered the fund group through its demerger from Prudential in 2019

John Foley

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M&G is on the hunt for a new chief executive as John Foley announces his retirement.

Foley (pictured) has been with the company for over two decades, having first joined the fund group’s former parent Prudential in 2000 as deputy group treasurer. Stepping up to become M&G’s top boss in 2015, he steered the company through its de-merger from Prudential and the lows of the coronavirus pandemic.

Since listing as a separate entity in October 2019, M&G has returned £1.8bn to shareholders and has seen assets climb to £370bn.

Under Foley’s watch, it has also waded into the DFM market with a series of M&A deals, snapping up  Sandringham Financial Partners, MPS provider TCF Investments and, more recently, a stake in digital wealth platform Moneyfarm.

Reflecting on his many years at the business, Foley said: “It has been a privilege to serve Prudential and M&G for the past 22 years. I am exceptionally proud of what M&G has achieved since becoming an independent listed company three years ago. We have delivered our demerger commitments despite extraordinary macro challenges, and are well-placed to leverage M&G’s scale and expertise to build an international leader in savings and investments.

“As our recent results demonstrated, M&G has reached an inflection point and has strong momentum in its strategic progress. It is now a good time to begin the search for a new CEO to lead M&G during the next phase of its development.”

M&G’s board has begun the process to appoint a new chief executive, led by Edward Braham, chair of the board and the nomination committee.

Foley will remain in his role until a successor is in place.

Barham said: “On behalf of the M&G board, I would like to thank John for his outstanding contribution to M&G and Prudential over the past 22 years, particularly since M&G became a public company.

“The board and I look forward to continuing to work with John as we undertake the search for his successor.”

See also: M&G shares lift off as it unveils £500m share buyback programme

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