NEWS
UK asset management firm Abrdn has announced the departure of its group CEO Stephen Bird after a four-year tenure at the company.
“Following the significant strategic repositioning of the company, the board and group CEO, Stephen Bird, have together agreed that it is the right time for Stephen to hand over the reins to the team he has assembled over the last four years,” stated the company’s latest announcement.
Jason Windsor, who assumed the role of group CFO at the firm in October last year, will serve as interim group CEO while the formal search process for a permanent successor begins.
Abrdn has outlined that Bird will collaborate with Windsor until June 30 “to ensure a smooth handover.” Subsequently, he will commence garden leave from July 1, with his employment officially concluding on December 31.
Assuming the position in 2020, Bird expressed gratitude for leading the firm during what he termed “an intensely challenging time in our industry.”
In January this year, the company initiated a new “transformation programme” aimed at streamlining operations and reducing costs. Bird remarked at the time that the initiative aims to “restore our core investments business to a more acceptable level of profitability.”
Furthermore, Bird spearheaded the successful £1.49 billion acquisition of subscription-based investment platform Interactive Investor in December 2021.
“I leave the company well positioned, having embedded greater diversification of revenues, retained a strong capital position and, most importantly, developed a refreshed leadership team which is ready and eager to take on the challenge of realising Abrdn’s full potential,” Bird commented.
