The Financial Conduct Authority has appointed Ashley Alder, the head of Hong Kong’s securities watchdog, as its new chairman.
Alder, who has run Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission since 2011, joins the UK’s financial watchdog at a time of internal strife amid strikes by staff over pay and conditions.
Alder, who two years ago was in the running to become chief executive of the FCA, will join as chairman in January for a five-year term.
He replaces the interim chair, Richard Lloyd, who ran the consumer watchdog Which? for five years until 2016. Lloyd was appointed in June after Charles Randell stepped down as the FCA chair – a year before the official end of his five-year term.
The appointment of Alder, who also chairs the board of the International Organization of Securities Commissions, follows a turbulent few years for the FCA.
The City watchdog, which is responsible for supervising thousands of companies, was criticised for its handling of two major consumer scandals in 2019: the £236m collapse of London Capital & Finance, which sold unregulated minibonds to investors, and the failure of Neil Woodford’s equity fund.
The FCA has also found itself battling staff since the appointment of Nikhil Rathi as chief executive in 2020, replacing Andrew Bailey, who became the governor of the Bank of England.
Rathi’s restructure of the FCA – including abolishing bonuses widely considered to be part of basic pay, “unfair” changes to the staff appraisal system, and plans to cut staff pension rights and lower pay for non-London staff – has triggered staff strikes over pay and conditions this year.
Alder said he would “value the opportunity to contribute to a crucial phase of the FCA’s history as it helps chart the UK’s post-Brexit future as a global financial centre which continues to support innovation and competition through its own world-leading regulatory standards”.
Alder moved to Hong Kong from the UK in 1989 as a lawyer at Herbert Smith, eventually becoming the head of the company’s Asian operation.
“We are looking forward to working with Ashley as he takes over the leadership of the FCA’s board next year,” said Lloyd, who will resume his role as the FCA’s senior independent director in January. “As the FCA continues to strengthen its vital work to protect consumers and our financial markets, his deep experience of leading a major international regulator will help us deliver our ambitious strategy for the future.”
