FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 4 November 2021
Manx Financial Group PLC
Changes to Group Boards
Following a strategic review, Manx Financial Group PLC (the "Group") is pleased to announce a number of Board changes to the Group, Conister Bank Limited (the "Bank") and Edgewater Associates Limited ("Edgewater"): -
· Douglas Grant is appointed Group CEO in succession to Denham Eke, and remains Managing Director of the Bank. Douglas joined the Group in October 2008 as Group Finance Director. He has over 35 years' experience working in finance, with multi-national, national, and regional businesses in both the public and private sector. He is a Chartered Banker with an executive MBA.
· Denham Eke is appointed to the new position of Executive Vice Chairman of the Group, and remains a Non-Executive Director of the Group's principal subsidiaries, including the Bank, Edgewater and Manx FX Limited.
· Gregory ("Greg") Jones is appointed as an Independent Non-Executive Director of the Group and Bank, and a member of the Group Audit, Risk and Compliance Committee. Greg was called to the UK Bar in 1982 and subsequently joined KPMG Isle of Man where he spent 29 years before retiring in October 2019 as Head of Tax. Greg currently provides tax advice for a leading Isle of Man based firm of advocates and is a director of a local Corporate Service Provider. He is a member of the Chartered Institute of Taxation.
· James Smeed is appointed as an Executive Director of the Group and Group Finance Director in succession to Douglas Grant, and remains Finance Director of the Bank. James joined the Group in August 2012 and was previously a manager with KPMG Audit on the Isle of Man. He became Finance Director of the Bank in May 2017. He is a Chartered Accountant and a Chartered Tax Advisor.
· John Spellman is appointed Non-executive Chairman of Edgewater in succession to Robert Frize. John remains an Independent Non-executive Director of both the Group and the Bank, and a member of the Group Audit, Risk and Compliance Committee.
· Haseeb Qureshi is appointed Deputy Managing Director for the Bank. Haseeb joined the Group in February 2016 and prior to this worked with KPMG. He was appointed as the Chief Operating Officer of the Bank in May 2017 and became an Executive Director of the Bank in July 2019. He is a Chartered Certified Accountant and a member of the Chartered Institute of Internal Auditors.
Jim Mellon, Executive Chairman of the Group, commented:
"I have great pleasure in announcing these important changes to the Group and subsidiary boards. I thank Denham for his decade plus time as CEO of the Group during which he has overseen the Bank's re-focus on its core lending business, a vastly improved Balance Sheet, the more recent diversification with the acquisition of complementary businesses, culminating in the payment of the Group's dividend after a gap of nearly twenty years. With the base Denham has laid, supported by our key stakeholders, I believe the Group is extremely well positioned to maintain this upward trend and Douglas will, I know, continue the drive forward as CEO, capitalising on our evolution over that time. Greg will be an invaluable addition to the Group, particularly in providing assistance in both matters legal and tax, especially as UK lending growth becomes an increasingly important part of our balance sheet, and also by broadening the already significant skill range of our Independent Directors. I also welcome James to the role of Group CFO and Haseeb to the new role of Deputy Managing Director of the Bank. Finally, John, as our new Non-executive Chairman of Edgewater, will serve to strengthen our position as the largest Independent Financial Advisor on the Isle of Man.
I am particularly pleased with the number of internal appointments, demonstrating our commitment to promoting from within."
THIS ANNOUNCEMENT CONTAINS INSIDE INFORMATION FOR THE PURPOSES OF THE MARKET ABUSE REGULATION (EU No. 596/2014) AS IT FORMS PART OF UK DOMESTIC LAW BY VIRTUE OF THE EUROPEAN UNION (WITHDRAWAL) ACT 2018.
For further information, please contact:
Manx Financial Group PLC Denham Eke, Vice Chairman Tel +44 (0)1624 694694 |
Beaumont Cornish Limited Roland Cornish/James Biddle Tel +44 (0) 20 7628 3396 |
Greentarget Limited Dafina Grapci-Penney Tel +44 (0) 203 963 1887 |
Disclosures pursuant to Schedule Two (g) of the AIM Rules:
Gregory ("Greg") Andrew Christopher Jones, aged 62, resident of the Isle of Man, holds the following directorships:
Current Directorships: |
Past Directorships held within the last five years: |
Towerside Court Limited |
KPMG LLC |
IOMCompany.COM Limited |
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J Co Limited |
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St Mary's Court Limited |
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Innisfree Limited |
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Catalina Property Services Limited |
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Barrowdale (Isle of Man) Limited |
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The Rheast Limited |
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James Andrew Brian Smeed, aged 37, resident of the Isle of Man, holds the following directorships:
Current Directorships: |
Past Directorships held within the last five years: |
Conister Bank Limited* |
Manx Financial Solutions PCC PLC* |
Commercial Finance Limited* |
Conister Legal Management Services Limited* |
Conister Finance & Leasing Ltd* |
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Edgewater Associates Limited* |
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Manx Financial Limited* |
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Waltons Finance Limited* |
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Mercy Beyond |
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*Subsidiaries of Manx Financial Group PLC |
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