Skipton Building Society’s chief executive, David Cutter, will step down in April after some 13 years in the role.
The building society, which bought two of the UK’s largest estate agencies during Cutter’s tenure, said he will leave after the lender's annual general meeting that month.
The board has initiated a hiring process for Cutter’s successor. It said it was looking for a candidate who can manage the diversified business model, as well as the balance sheet and customer proposition - being a member-led society.
The outgoing chief executive has spent more than 30 years of his professional career at Skipton.
At the end of 2020, under Cutter’s leadership, Connells Group - which Skipton bought back in 2010 - agreed a deal to buy Countrywide for £134m, creating the UK’s largest estate agency network.
Despite the sheer scale of the deal, bringing together close to 1,500 branches, the Competition and Markets Authority didn’t block the deal.
Dubbed a ‘rescue deal’ at the time, it followed a five-year decline of Countrywide’s shares by nearly 100 per cent.
"It has been a privilege to lead Skipton and I am extremely proud of all that we have achieved,” said Cutter.
“After almost 30 years with the society, and over 22 years on the board, having completed the acquisition of Countrywide and with an expected strong financial performance in 2021 against the backdrop of the pandemic, the board and I have agreed that I will step down from my role at the AGM.”
Robert East, Skipton’s chairman, said Cutter had led the society out of the challenges of the global financial crisis and through Covid-19, as well as through “the transformative acquisition” of Countrywide by Connells which has led it “to the robust financial health we enjoy today”.
"The growth in membership, savings balances and mortgage lending through David's tenure show his focus and dedication to serving and delivering for our members,” he concluded.
Cutter has held various other roles at Skipton, including operations director, group corporate development director and head of internal audit. He is also a qualified chartered accountant.
In the meantime, Cutter said it was “business as usual” for the society.
ruby.hinchliffe@ft.com
