Pennant-Rea steps down from Henderson chair

Rupert Pennant-Rea is stepping down as chairman of the fund manager Henderson, which is shifting its tax base back to the UK.

The City grandee, who will become chairman of the mutual insurer Royal London, holds an array of directorships with listed companies including the transport group Go-Ahead. He is a former editor of The Economist and, as an independent director of Times Newspapers, will have a say in picking the paper's new editor.

Since Mr Pennant-Rea became chairman of Henderson in 2005, he has steered through the rescues of two rivals – New Star Asset Management in 2009 and Gartmore in 2011. The deals have helped Henderson boost assets under management to £64.8bn.

Mr Pennant-Rea will succeed Royal London chairman Tim Melville-Ross, a former Nationwide chief executive, in May.

Henderson, which moved its tax base to Ireland four years ago, is moving back to the UK in response to the Chancellor's relaxation of tax rules.