Randell has chosen to depart from his position at the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) in Spring next year.

He has now asked chancellor Rishi Sunak to start looking for his successor.

Liz Field, chief executive of PIMFA, said: “Charles Randall has been chair of the FCA during what has been a time of unprecedented change and upheaval from Brexit through to the effective regulation of the financial services industry during the COVID pandemic.

“He leaves his role with our best wishes for the future and our thanks for his calm and thoughtful leadership. The FCA is not perfect, as recent scandals illustrate, and it does need to reform, but Charles has been instrumental in recognising that need for reform and in working to achieve change.

“The FCA should, as Charles himself has said, focus its attention on the successful implementation of its transformation programme, which we hope will see it transition towards a more proactive data-led regulatory approach and achieve many of the aims set out in its recent business plan.”

Randell added: “As the FCA prepares to implement its new wholesale, retail and data strategies under an established new executive, now is the right time for a new chair to carry on the close and continuous oversight of our transformation.

“During the pandemic, the FCA stood up for consumers and businesses, while the markets we oversee proved resilient, laying the foundations for record capital raising to support the recovery.”