Under-fire Hargreaves Lansdown (HL) chair Deanna Oppenheimer has unexpectedly announced today that she will step down from the role and will be replaced by Alison Platt, a former chair of L&G Financial Advice and former CEO of advice network Countrywide.

Activist investors had threatened to vote against Ms Oppenheimer’s re-appointment as chair at the December AGM.

Some investors have been unhappy with the firm’s share price performance in recent years, including founder Peter Hargreaves.

Hargreaves Lansdown plc's share price has fallen from a peak of 2,419p in May 2019 to 706p today.

In a Stock Exchange announcement today, HL's board announced that Alison Platt would be appointed chair and a non-executive director of HL, subject to regulatory approvals.

She will succeed Deanna Oppenheimer, who served as chair for six years, at HL's Annual General Meeting (AGM) on 8 December.

Ms Platt is currently chair of Dechra Pharmaceuticals, a specialist veterinary products business currently being acquired. She is also a non-executive director of Tesco and the chair of general insurer Ageas UK. She will join HL's board in early 2024.

Ms Platt has substantial experience in financial services and was chair of L&G Financial Advice from 2019 to 2022 and CEO of Countrywide from 2014 to 2018. Prior to that she held senior roles at BUPA, both in the UK and internationally.

The board has confirmed the appointment of Penny James as interim chair. She is currently the senior independent director (SID). Ms James will chair the HL 2023 AGM.

Having remained on the board to support with the chair selection process, Roger Perkin has told the board that he will not be standing for re-election at the AGM and will be stepping down from the HL plc Board on 8 December. He has served on the board for six years, including as chair of the board audit committee.

Because of the changes the company says the resolution to re-elect Deanna Oppenheimer as a director of the company at the AGM has now been withdrawn. 

HL CEO Dan Olley said: "I would like to thank Deanna for her guidance and stewardship during her tenure as chair. I look forward to working with Alison who brings a wealth of experience to the board."

Ms Platt said: "I am delighted to be joining the HL board and excited by the opportunity to work with Dan and the team as HL continues its critical work in supporting clients to make savings and investment decisions with confidence. I look forward to working closely with my new board colleagues to guide HL's next phase of growth."

Ms Oppenheimer said: "I'm honoured to have overseen the board during a period of significant change for the industry and for HL. HL is in a strong position for growth and has skilled leadership which will ensure the company's future success. Over the last six years our client numbers have doubled to 1.8 million and our share of the direct-to-consumer market has grown significantly from 35% to 42%.

"I'm delighted to hand over to Alison, whose broad and relevant experience across different sectors will be of great benefit and support to the HL team as they move forward. I would also like to thank Roger for his service and dedication to HL and for staying on over these last few months to support the chair selection process."