Chartered Insurance Institute CEO Alan Vallance has resigned after just over a year to become the new CEO of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW).

Speculation has mounted recently that Mr Vallance may leave the 122,000-member CII which has been embroiled in a long-running row with its subsidiary the Personal Finance Society.

The 166,000-member ICAEW has been searching for a replacement for its current CEO Michael Izza who earned just over £630,000 in 2022, according to the ICAEW’s latest annual report.

Mr Vallance’s current package has not been disclosed by the CII yet but his predecessor at the CII was on a package of between £225,000 and £250,000.

Mr Vallance, a qualified Chartered Accountant, has a long track record in financial services and professional bodies and was previously CEO of the Royal Institute of British Architects.

His appointment as CII CEO was announced in April 2022 but he only formally took over the role of CEO from his predecessor, interim CEO Jonathan Clark, in August 2022, 14 months ago. He will stand down in the spring to take up his new role at the ICAEW, one of the UK's main accountancy bodies.

In December 2022 the CII was embroiled in a bitter row with its Financial Planning subsidiary the Personal Finance Society, the professional body for Chartered Financial Planners, over the future direction and governance of the PFS. The row resulted in a number of resignations from the PFS including newly-elected President Caroline Stuart and several PFS board members.

Former CII CEO Sian Fisher resigned in October 2021 following a row about the axing of the PFS CEO role. The role was later reinstated.

Mr Vallance is a long-standing Fellow and member of the ICAEW.

Dr Helen Phillips, CII Group board chair, said: “The CII Group is sorry to see Alan leave, but we recognise his desire to take what is a unique opportunity to lead the Chartered body of his own profession. The CII Group board is grateful to Alan for the remarkable job he has done over his tenure, including leading the development and deployment of our new Strategic Plan. We look forward to identifying a successor to Alan soon to build on his strong legacy.”

Mr Vallance said: “Leading the CII Group has been a privilege. Building and maintaining public trust in the insurance, Financial Planning and mortgage advice professions is essential to every economy around the world, and I am honoured to have had the opportunity to lead a Royal Charter body containing two pre-eminent global professional membership organisations – the CII and PFS.

“The decision to leave was not easy, but I am confident that the group is now in a much stronger position. The foundations we have built since 2022 are a solid base on which the Institute will continue to improve the way it serves its members, customers and the wider public for years to come.”

In a statement today to ICAEW members he said: "I am delighted to be joining ICAEW. As a Chartered Accountant it is a genuine honour to have been asked to lead the organisation of which I am a member and to succeed Michael Izza as chief executive. The accountancy profession today plays a vitally important leadership role on the key issues facing society.

"I am determined to make sure that ICAEW leads from the front and that this role continues, indeed evolves in the future, with an unwavering focus on the public interest so that our members play their rightful part in building a world of sustainable economies.”

Michael Izza, ICAEW chief executive, said: “It has been a huge privilege to lead ICAEW through the last 17 years of accelerating change in business, the economy and society, and to see the Institute grow and strengthen. Our touchstone has always been the public interest, and I passionately believe in the accountancy profession as a force for good in national life and the wider world. I am therefore delighted that Alan has been appointed as my successor and I know that the vision and the energy he brings to this role will ensure that ICAEW does not rest on its laurels.”

The CII will shortly launch a search for a replacement for Mr Vallance.