REG - abrdn PLC - Directorate Change

AberdeenAnnouncement

24/09/2024 16:00

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RNS Number : 4748F  abrdn PLC  24 September 2024

abrdn plc

 

Board appointments

 

abrdn plc announces that Katie Bickerstaffe and Vivek Ahuja have been
appointed to the Board with effect from 1 October 2024. They will put
themselves forward for election by shareholders at the AGM on 8 May 2025.

 

Katie will join the Remuneration Committee. Vivek will become a member of the
Audit Committee and will join as Audit Committee Chair Designate. On being
appointed Chair of the Audit Committee, subject to regulatory approval, he
will additionally be appointed to the Nomination and Governance Committee.

 

Katie has held executive leadership roles within several large FTSE listed
companies, most recently at Marks & Spencer, from where she retired in
July 2024 as Co-CEO. She is a highly regarded retail and consumer business
leader with experience grounded through early career spells at Unilever,
PepsiCo and Dyson. Across her career she has managed a wide range of business
transformation challenges and brings extensive expertise on digital business
models and executing change programmes, including through M&A. Having
overseen M&S Bank, Katie also brings a well-informed perspective on
regulated financial services sectors. She currently sits on the Board of
Barratt Developments and chairs that company's Remuneration Committee. She is
also Senior Independent Director of the England and Wales Cricket Board and
will be appointed as Senior Independent Director of Diploma PLC from 1 October
2024.

 

Vivek has over thirty years of senior general management experience in
international financial services and private equity. In his executive career,
he was most recently CEO of Terra Firma, a leading European Private Equity
firm and, prior to that, Deputy Group CFO at Standard Chartered plc. He is a
highly experienced CFO and brings broad commercial and operational experience
spanning finance, strategy, business and cultural transformation, risk
management and corporate governance. Vivek is an experienced Non-Executive
Director and currently chairs the Risk Committee at NatWest Markets plc and is
the Audit & Risk Committee Chair at PZ Cussons plc. He is due to be
appointed as Senior Independent Director at PZ Cussons from 21 November 2024.

 

Commenting on these changes, Sir Douglas Flint, Chair of abrdn plc, said:

 

"I am delighted to welcome Katie and Vivek to our Board. Katie is a skilled
strategic thinker and operator and we look forward to her bringing a wealth of
transformation and change experience to the Board. Vivek's considerable CFO
experience at listed financial services companies and straight talking,
logical approach will be highly valuable assets during future Board
discussions.".

 

Following these changes, the Board will comprise one executive director, eight
non-executive directors and the Chair. The Board will be made up of four women
and six men. The Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation
Authority have been notified of these changes. Katie and Vivek's other
appointments are listed below, and no other information is required to be
disclosed pursuant to paragraph LR 9.6.13R of the Listing Rules of the
Financial Conduct Authority.

 

24 September 2024

 

 

Enquiries:

 

 Media

 Sarah Moody                     +44 (0) 7721 679 892
 Duncan Young                    +44 (0) 7920 868 865
 Institutional Equity Investors

 Duncan Heath                    +44 (0) 7884 109 285

 Group Secretariat

 Iain Jones                      +44 (0) 7944 203 003

 

LEI number of abrdn plc: 0TMBS544NMO7GLCE7H90

 

Classification: 3.1. Additional regulated information required to be disclosed
under the laws of the United Kingdom.

 

END

 

Notes to Editors

 

Vivek Ahuja

 

Non-Executive Director's Fee

Vivek's fee as a Non-Executive Director of abrdn plc will be £73,500 per
annum.  His fees as a member of the Audit Committee will be £17,500 per
committee per annum.

 

Interest in shares

As at the date of this announcement, Vivek does not hold any shares in abrdn
plc.

 

Biographical details:

 Nationality:  Singaporean

 Education:    ICAEW

               Chartered Accountant

               Mumbai University

               BComm

 

Current non-executive Roles

 2024 - Current   PZ Cussons

                  Non-Executive Director

                  Chair of Audit & Risk Committee

 2018 - Current   NatWest Markets

                  Non-Executive Director

                  Chair of Risk Committee

 2020 - Current   King's College London

                  Independent Member

 Executive Career summary:
 2018 - 2023      Terra Firma Capital Partners

                  CEO

                  Group CFO & COO

 2000 - 2017      Standard Chartered

                  Deputy Group CFO

                  Group CFO, Wholesale Banking

                  CFO, Middle East & South Asia

 1990 - 2000      ANZ Grindlays

                  CFO/COO, Middle East & South Asia

                  CFO/COO, UAE & Gulf

                  Unit Head, Corporate & Institutional Banking

 1988 - 1990      HSBC

                  Relationship Manager, Corporate Banking

 

Katie Bickerstaffe

 

Non-Executive Director's Fee

Katie's fee as a Non-Executive Director of abrdn plc will be £73,500 per
annum.  Her fee as a member of the Remuneration Committee will be £17,500
per annum.

 

Interest in shares

As at the date of this announcement, Katie holds 30,195 shares in abrdn plc.

 

Biographical details:

 Nationality:  British

 Education:    Nottingham University, MBA

               Loughborough University

               BSc, Geography

 

Current non-executive Roles

 1 October 2024 onwards  Diploma PLC

                         Senior Independent Director

 2021 - Current          Barratt Developments

                         Non-Executive Director

                         Chair of Remuneration Committee

 2019 - Current          England and Wales Cricket Board

                         Senior Independent Non-Executive Director

 Executive Career summary:
 2020 - 2024             M&S

                         Co-CEO

                         Co-Chief Operating Officer

                         Chief Strategy and Transformation Director

 2018 - 2020             SSE

                         Executive Chair

                         CEO Designate

 2008 - 2018             Dixons Carphone

                         CEO, UK & Ireland

                         CEO, Dixons, UK & Ireland

                         Group Marketing, People, Property, Ecommerce and Services Director, Dixons

                       Retail

                       Somerfield Stores

                       Managing Director, Kwik Save
 2001 - 2006

                       Group Retail Director

                       Managing Director, Somerfield

                       Group HR Director

                       Dyson Appliances

                       Group HR Director
 1998 - 2001

                       PepsiCo

                       Various roles
 1995 - 1998

                       Unilever

                       Various roles
 1991 - 1995

 

 

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