SJP announced on 23 May that Iain Cornish, currently the senior independent director, will replace Bates as chair.
The wealth management firm said it is also “in the advanced stages” of a process to appoint a new independent non-executive director to the board.
Bates, who joined the SJP board in 2004 and became chair in 2014, said: “It has been a privilege to be a director of St James’s Place for more than 13 years and chair of the board since 1 January 2014″.
She has made the decision to retire after overseeing the successful transition of Andrew Croft to chief executive officer from David Bellamy in January 2018, SJP said.
“I am confident that Iain and Andrew, the board and the executive team will continue to deliver value to clients, partners, advisers, staff and shareholders and continue to evolve the business in the years ahead. I wish them all the best,” she said.
The succession planning and the appointment process was undertaken by a committee of independent members of the board, which excluded Bates and Cornish.
The appointments will become effective once appropriate regulatory approvals are granted.
Cornish said: “I am delighted to have been asked to chair St James’s Place and would like to thank Sarah for her tremendous contribution during her time on the board. I very much look forward to working with the rest of board and a first-class Executive team to deliver further success into the future.”
