Close Brothers poaches Howell from LSE

Jonathan Howell to leave London Stock Exchange after eight years, replacing Peter Winkworth as FD at merchant banking giant Close Brothers

Written by David Jetuah

Accountancy Age, 04 Oct 2007

Close Brothers has announced that Jonathan Howell will be its FD as of February 2008.

Howell joins from the London Stock Exchange, where he has been in charge of finances for eight years.

In a statement, the FTSE 250 corporate said: 'Close Brothers group is pleased to
announce the appointment of Jonathan Howell as finance director. He will also
join the main board of Close Brothers. It is expected he will take up his post
in early February 2008.'

Howell is a qualified chartered accountant and has worked at the LSE since 1996. In 1998 he became head of regulation and in 1999 he was appointed to the main board as FD.

Colin Keogh, chief executive of Close Brothers group, said: 'We are delighted that Jonathan is joining us. He brings a wealth of experience and a fresh approach and we are looking forward to having him on our Board at what is an exciting stage of development for our group.'

In a separate statement, the London Stock Exchange said that an external search for Howell's replacement was underway.