The former chief executive of Virgin Money has been selected as the government’s preferred candidate to lead the UK’s accountancy regulator following the expected departure of Sir Jan du Plessis. Dame Jayne-Anne Gadhia was named by Business and Trade Secretary Peter Kyle to replace du Plessis for a four-year term
Maria Ward-Brennan
Monday 13 July 2026 10:39 am
The former chief executive of Virgin Money has been selected as the government’s preferred candidate to lead the UK’s accountancy regulator following the expected departure of Sir Jan du Plessis.
Dame Jayne-Anne Gadhia was named by Business and Trade Secretary Peter Kyle to replace du Plessis for a four-year term overseeing the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) regulator following his departure on 30 September.
Du Plessis was nominated by the Tory government to lead the FRC during its planned transformation into the Audit, Reporting and Governance Authority (ARGA), but the Bill to introduce the move was scrapped in January by Labour to “avoid significant new costs to firms”.
Gadhia, chartered accountant by training, was the boss of Virgin Money between 2007 and 2018, during which she orchestrated the acquisition of collapsed bank Northern Rock and navigated the combined entity’s subsequent public listing.
She is the founder of the financial app Snoop and currently chairs the digital wealth manager Moneyfarm and serves as an advisor to SumUp.
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Gadhia also holds multiple high-profile chairmanships, including energy supplier OVO and theatre Shakespeare’s Globe, and serves as lead non-executive director at HMRC and senior independent director at the Tate.
Gadhia’s appointment awaits final approval
Her nomination follows an “open competition”, but the Business and Trade Committee will hold a pre-appointment scrutiny hearing and report on her suitability for the post, which is subject to the Secretary of State confirming the appointment.
Chief executive Richard Moriarty said: “Her exceptional experience, her deep understanding of what it takes to build and lead institutions that command public trust, and her commitment to the role the FRC can play in supporting our economy make her ideally suited to lead our board.”
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