The FCA’s interim chief executive Chris Woolard will leaving the regulator when a permanent replacement for the role comes in next month, the watchdog has announced.

Woolard was previously the FCA’s director of strategy and competition, and stepped up to take the chief executive role in March when Andrew Bailey announced he was leaving to become the governor at the Bank of England.

Woolard will end up holding the role for six months, until former London Stock Exchange boss Nikhil Rathi takes over the helm full time in October.

Woolard will not be taking up any external role until at least six months after he departs the FCA, the regulator says in a statement today, which confirms that Woolard will vacate all board, executive and decision making roles at the end of this month.

Woolard says: “It has been a tremendous honour to serve as chief executive of the FCA at such a critical time for the country and financial services. I’d like to thank my many colleagues over the last eight years for all their help and support.”

Rathi was appointed to the permanent chief executive post in June. Following a hearing in front of MPs, he was was approved for the role in July.

Before Woolard leaves, he will chair a review into unsecured credit by the FCA.

This will look at “the impact of the coronavirus on employment security and credit scores, changes in business models and new developments in unsecured lending including the growth of unregulated products in retail and the workplace”.

With the help of an advisory group, it will make recommendations to the FCA board in early 2021.