The chief executive of Aviva is stepping down from his position, effective immediately.
Mark Wilson will leave his position today (9 October) and is to be placed on six months gardening leave.
An Aviva spokesperson said Mr Wilson was hired to the position of chief executive in 2013 to "deliver the turnaround" of the insurance giant, and having successfully done that a new phase of leadership is now needed.
The search for a replacement will begin immediately and is expected to take four months - in the meantime Sir Adrian Montague, non-executive chairman of Aviva, will assume Mr Wilson’s executive responsibilities.
Mr Wilson will reportedly be entitled to a pro-rated bonus for the 2018 financial year, reflective of the year prior to his commencement of gardening leave.
Mr Wilson said: "When I joined Aviva, the company was in poor health. Aviva is very different today. I have achieved what I wanted to achieve and now it is time for me to move on to new things.
"It has been an honour to lead Aviva through this period of immense change. I am happy to leave the company in a strong position from which it can thrive.
"I would like to thank all those within and outside Aviva who have supported the successful turnaround and I wish everyone in Aviva the very best for the future."
Aviva has suffered numerous technical glitches in the past year, experiencing issues with their intermediary website in November leaving advisers unable to submit cases and there was a delay to its replatforming process in January.
Despite this, the provider reported platform asset growth in its August interim report - with positive net fund flows of £2.2bn.
Sir Adrian, chairman of Aviva, said: "The board would like to thank Mark for what he has achieved in his six years at Aviva. He leaves the group in a far stronger state than when he joined.
"Aviva is now financially strong and delivering solid earnings growth.
"There is much further to go in accelerating out strategic development and enhancing shareholder value. We have agreed with Mark it is the right time for a new leader to ensure Aviva delivers to its full potential.
"Our priority is to ensure, with our new chief executive, that we have the right strategy, focus, capabilities and leadership. I am confident we will deliver long term growth for the benefit of our customers, our people and our shareholders."
rachel.addison@ft.com
