(Reuters) – British lender Close Brothers named Mike Morgan as its new group CEO on Tuesday, and said that Chief Executive Adrian Sainsbury would leave the company to focus on his health after a period of medical leave.
The changes occur at a time when the British lender navigates the repercussions of a motor finance ruling, which has impacted banks and lenders across the UK.
In January last year, Britain’s Financial Conduct Authority said it would look into consumer complaints about overcharging on commission when buying a car.
A London court ruled in October that motor finance brokers should inform customers about commissions when taking out car loans, opening a path for a potential multi-billion-pound consumer redress scheme scandal.
The firm was recently granted permission to appeal the ruling.
In November, Close Brothers forecast a potential impact to its 2025 outlook from likely redress claims.
Morgan, the company’s finance director, took charge of Sainsbury’s principal responsibilities in September after the latter went on leave.
Sainsbury joined Close Brothers in 2013 as the CEO of the commercial division and was appointed as the Group CEO in 2020. Morgan joined the company as group finance director in 2010.
(Reporting by Chandini Monnappa and Yamini Kalia in Bengaluru; Editing by Mrigank Dhaniwala and Sherry Jacob-Phillips)
