Nutmeg appoints Neil Alexander, chief financial and operating officer, as new chief executive officer, as Martin Stead is set to leave the business in early 2020 to move overseas

During his time at Nutmeg, Martin has helped to secure £90m of capital investment into the company to fund a growth plan that has seen Nutmeg recognised as the fifth largest wealth manager in the UK and successfully expand to new markets in Asia. The business has grown from serving 12,000 customers in the UK to supporting over 90,000 people globally to achieve their financial goals through investment portfolios that have regularly outperformed the industry benchmark ARC; assets under administration have increased from £300 million to approaching £2bn; and revenue has quadrupled.

Neil joined Nutmeg in May 2017 from Secretsales.com, where he helped them achieve their exit with a sale to Wowcher. He is perfectly placed to lead Nutmeg through the next stage of development and growth and brings a wide range of finance, risk and management experience in online, international, regulated and growth stage businesses from large corporates through to agile start-ups.

William Reeve, chair, Nutmeg board, said: “Following over four years leading the transformation of Nutmeg from start-up to scale-up, Nutmeg’s CEO, Martin Stead, will be leaving the company in early 2020 in order to move overseas. Neil Alexander has been appointed chief executive officer to lead the business through its next stage of growth.

“On behalf of the Nutmeg board and the entire business, I’d like to thank Martin for his passionate leadership of the company over the past four years and wish him well for the future.”

Commenting on his appointment, Neil Alexander, said: “Nutmeg is a business that was founded to change the wealth management industry and offer high-quality investment management to many more people. Everything Nutmeg does starts with the customer and, above all else, the business and our team, are driven by a desire to help people achieve their life goals. Seven years into the Nutmeg journey, I am honoured to be taking on the role of CEO to lead the company through its next stage of growth.”

Martin Stead commented: “Nutmeg's mission is as important today is it was when I joined in 2015. Being entrusted with the stewardship of Nutmeg and leading a world-class team of passionate Nutmeggers every day, has been the greatest privilege and responsibility of my life. I’ll be keeping track of my investments through the Nutmeg app, but I leave confident that Nutmeg will continue successfully on its path to achieving profitable scale as Neil Alexander takes on the reins.”