FORMER investment banker Hector Sants has emerged as the favourite to succeed John Tiner as chief executive of the City watchdog, the Financial Services Authority (FSA).
Tiner, head of the regulator’s wholesale and markets arm, is said to be the leading candidate, with his opposite number at the retail division, Clive Briault, and the head of regulatory services, David Kenmir, also in the frame.
Two external candidates are thought still to be in the running, but insiders say Sants is ahead in the selection race. The appointment is being overseen by a four-member panel led by Sir Callum McCarthy, the FSA chairman, and his deputy, Dame Deirdre Hutton. A final decision may not be made until after Tiner leaves on July 20 after almost four years in the top job.
Sants gave up his post as head of European investment banking at Credit Suisse to join the FSA in 2004. His investment-banking background has made him widely liked in the City. He won praise for tightening the regulator’s monitoring of hedge funds.
Sants also led FSA attempts to cut out market abuse, but Tiner admitted last week that the watchdog had been frustrated in its mission to crack down on insider dealing, and he accused banks of being complacent about possible exploitation by their staff of secret information about bids.