Andrew Bailey: Bank of England veteran appointed FCA chief after Tracey McDermott quit race

Andrew Bailey, the deputy governor of the Bank of England, has been appointed as chief executive of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), chancellor George Osborne has announced. The banker will succeed Tracey McDermott, who worked as interim CEO and recently announced she would not run for the job.

Bailey will serve for a five-year term, according to the Treasury. He is set to officially start at the helm of the finance regulator once the BoE has found a replacement for him as CEO of the Prudential Regulation Authority.

"We have cast the net far and wide for this crucial appointment and, having led the Bank of England's response to the financial crisis, Andrew is simply the most respected, most experienced and most qualified person in the world to do the job," Osborne said.

In July 2015, former FCA boss Martin Wheatley announced his resignation, saying he would leave in September of that year. Interim chief Tracey McDermott announced on 7 January that she was withdrawing from the race for CEO of the FCA.

Bailey, still deputy governor at the BoE, is monetary veteran. He has worked at the central bank for 30 years and has worked at the helm of the PRA for two and a half years.

John Griffith-Jones, the regulator's chairman commented: "Andrew ... brings unrivalled regulatory experience, a proven track record and an excellent reputation in the UK and internationally. Having been an FCA Board member since 2013 he has been fully engaged with all the regulatory issues that we have faced in recent years and in setting our strategy for the future."

"I look forward to working with Andrew," he added. "He has done a great job at the PRA and he will build on the work the FCA has done over the last three years as a strong, independent regulator."

In addition to appointing Bailey, the FCA also announced it has added prominent economic players Bradley Fried, Baroness Sarah Hogg, Ruth Kelly and Tom Wright to its board.