(Bloomberg) --
Helena Morrissey left Legal & General Investment Management amid reports that she was interviewed to take over from Mark Carney as governor of the Bank of England.
Morrissey stepped down after close to three years as head of personal investing at the London-based asset manager, according to a company statement on Friday. The Mail on Sunday newspaper reported last month that Morrissey, a prominent Brexit backer, had been sounded out for the BOE's top job. Carney is due to step down at the end of January.
“I see a changing Britain and have a lot of ideas and other things that I want to achieve,” Morrissey said in the statement. “I am looking forward to the next phase of my career at a time of great change and opportunity.”
The BOE succession is clouded in uncertainty as Brexit consumes the government's time. The appointment was originally scheduled to be made this autumn, but the Treasury has pushed back the timeline as the Oct. 31 deadline to leave the European Union approaches.
“The process is on track and we will make an appointment in due course,” the Treasury said.
A spokeswoman for Morrissey said she couldn't comment on the speculation.
Before joining LGIM in 2017, Morrissey was chief executive officer of Newton Investment Management for 15 years. Hers is the second major departure from the asset manager this year, following ex-CEO Mark Zinkula's exit.
In her role, Morrissey helped launch the Future World GIRL Fund, which favors companies that have achieved higher levels of gender diversity. She will be replaced in the personal-investing role by Honor Solomon, currently head of retail for EMEA, and Emma Douglas, head of defined contribution.
To contact the reporter on this story: Lucca de Paoli in London at gdepaoli1@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Shelley Robinson at ssmith118@bloomberg.net, Patrick Henry, Brian Swint
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