The appointment follows the decision earlier this year by Paul Seymour, who has served since the end of November 2005, to stand down as chair of the BAS. Sutcliffe will take over in mid-June 2009. Sutcliffe was chief executive of Prudential UK from 1995 to 1997. He was Deputy Chairman of Liberty International plc, a shopping centre owner and developer in the UK, in 1998-1999. He joined Old Mutual in 2000 and was group CEO from 2001 to 2008. He is currently a non-executive Director of Lonmin plc and of Sun Life Financial Inc. He is also a Trustee of the Buffelshoek Trust, which aims to educate children in the Manyeleti villages in South Africa. He served as a Trustee of The Nelson Mandela Legacy Trust (UK) from 2005 to 2008.
Sir Christopher Hogg, FRC Chair, says: “I am delighted that Jim Sutcliffe has agreed to become the next Chair of the BAS. I am confident that his extensive commercial experience will be of great value to the BAS and will build on the excellent pioneering work of Paul Seymour in seeing the BAS through its first formative years.”