Financial Reporting Council chair Sir Jan du Plessis to retire
The chair of the audit watchdog, Sir Jan du Plessis, has announced his intention to step down from the role at the end of September, when he will retire from corporate and public life.
Over his career, the businessman has served as non-executive chairman of BT Group, non-executive chairman of Rio Tinto Group, and as a former non-executive director of Lloyds TSB Group.
In December 2021, du Plessis was nominated by the Tory government to lead the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) during its then-planned transformation into the Audit, Reporting and Governance Authority (ARGA)
The ARGA Bill was then shelved by the Tory government in November 2023 in order to focus on “growth and the UK’s competitiveness”, but returned to the table when Labour took power.
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However, it was scrapped last month to “avoid significant new costs to firms”.
Sir du Plessis has informed the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, Peter Kyle, that he will retire, and with his notice period, the concluding date of his role at the FRC will be in September.
He said: “After a long career in business, it has been a real privilege over the last four years to be of public service. I am immensely proud of what the FRC has achieved in recent years and of the professionalism, integrity and commitment that I have seen across the organisation.”
FRC’s chief executive Richard Moriarty added: “Sir Jan’s leadership, clarity of purpose and commitment to the public interest have shaped the FRC during one of the most important periods in its history.”