NW-born Deloitte chief to stand down

JOHN Connolly, the Manchester-born senior partner and chief executive of accountancy giant Deloitte, is to stand down in May next year.

Mr Connolly, 59, a Manchester United fan, attended St Bedes College in Whalley Range, and has led the firm for the last decade.

The corporate financier, who earned more than £5m last year, left school at 16 to work at a high street accountancy firm.

After 10 years he moved to London to join Mann Judd, which later became part of Deloitte.

As senior partner in 2002 he led Deloitte’s acquisition of the Arthur Andersen practice after the Enron scandal, a move which added 3,500 people to the pay-roll and is widely held to have been a success.

Under his stewardship fee income has rocketed more than 300% to nearly £2bn, leaving it second only to PricewaterhouseCoopers in the Big Four.

His most recent deal saw Deloitte buy commercial property adviser Drivers Jonas.

A keen horse-racing fan and owner, bets are already being taken on who will succeed him with head of tax David Sproul and audit partner Martin Eadon among the names reportedly in the frame.

Although he is standing down as UK chief executive Mr Connolly will not be retiring.