Barclays CEO Anthony Jenkins to leave the bank

Barclays did not give a reason for Jenkins' departure

Anthony Jenkins will step down next Friday (Getty Images)

Barclays CEO Anthony Jenkins is set to leave the bank after almost three years at the top.

Barclays did not give a reason for Jenkins' departure in a surprise announcement from the UK's second biggest bank on Wednesday.

Sir Michael Rake, Barclays deputy chairman, said that a "new set of skills" were needed to run the bank and that the search for a new chairman was already underway.

Barclays executive chairman John McFarlane will take the helm as interim CEO.

McFarlane said: "We... need to improve revenue, costs and capital performance. We also need to become more externally focused and deal with the internal bureaucracy by becoming leaner and more agile."