SEVEN months after joining Abrdn, Jason Windsor has found himself swiftly promoted into one of the toughest jobs in the UK asset management industry: at the helm of the struggling £507 billion (S$872 billion) firm.
Edinburgh-based Abrdn named him on Friday (May 24) its interim chief executive officer, taking over from Stephen Bird, who is standing down by mutual agreement with the board after a turbulent three-and-a-half years.
For many, the appointment was not a surprise.
His arrival at Abrdn in October as chief financial officer sparked speculation across the industry that he would be positioned to take the top role, according to sources familiar with the matter. Windsor is seen both inside and outside the company as a safe pair of hands and not necessarily a temporary appointment, they said, asking not to be named because the discussions were private.
Windsor, 51, has a City of London career spanning more than three decades. He’s spent 12 years at insurer Aviva Plc in various positions including as CFO of the group, following on from 15 years as a Morgan Stanley investment banker. Before joining Abrdn he was CFO at homebuilder Persimmon.
Abrdn declined to comment on whether Windsor is being considered as a permanent replacement for Bird. In a statement on Friday, the asset manager said it was initiating a formal search process and will consider external candidates.
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The firm plans to move as quickly as possible to fill the role but this may take several months, according to a source familiar with the matter.
Windsor is, at least for now, inheriting a company worn out by years of outflows and consecutive rounds of job cuts.
Under Bird, hundreds of employees, including many respected senior staffers, have departed. During Bird’s tenure, the firm’s share price has tumbled by about 30 per cent and clients have pulled more than £80 billion from its funds.
Abrdn is not alone in struggling to keep up in an industry rife with redemptions and margin pressure. Firms have spent years trying to reverse a client shift to cheaper passive products. Active money managers across the globe have resorted to mergers and cost-cutting measures as they try to stem client outflows and preserve their squeezed margins.
They now also face a new world of higher interest rates, geopolitical tensions and economic uncertainty.
But Abrdn’s troubles are more pronounced than those of some of its rivals. Bird tried to re-imagine the business and make it less reliant on mutual funds, with little visible success.
The firm said Windsor is committed to the strategy and the transformation plans that Bird put in place.
Whether he can be more successful remains to be seen. BLOOMBERG
