People moves: HSBC, FCA, and P1 Investment Services

HSBC has appointed Nick Elias as head of wealth platforms, wealth and premier solutions.

The appointment is effective from 15 August 2026, with Elias based in London. In this new role, Elias will look to enable the bank to further embed AI into platforms and services, and lead its ‘wealth transformation programme’ to build a future-proof wealth business model. Elias joined HSBC in 2012 and has held several leadership positions across frontline corporate banking, wholesale banking and frontline transformation. He is currently global head of customer relationship management within the corporate and institutional banking chief operating office function.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has announced Kirsty Cooper will take up the role as chair of the Listing Authority Advisory Panel (LAAP).

Cooper is a non-executive director and chair of the People Committee at Scottish Widows, and a non-executive director and chair of the Risk and Compliance Committee at Aon UK. Her career has spanned over 30 years in the insurance and financial services sector, including several senior roles at Aviva. Meanwhile, Clare Woodman and Matt Hammerstein have been reappointed as chair of the FCA Markets Practitioner Panel and chair of the FCA Practitioner Panel respectively. Woodman is head of EMEA, Latin America, and Canada and CEO of Morgan Stanley & Co. International, and is a member of both the global operating and management committees and chair of Morgan Stanley Europe SE. Hammerstein is the CEO of Barclays UK Corporate Bank. Prior to this, he was the CEO of Barclays Bank UK, covering retail banking, business banking, and Barclaycard UK.

P1 Investment Services has appointed Nick French as commercial director.

French brings nearly 30 years of experience in financial services, having held senior commercial and leadership positions at Russell Investments, Marlborough Group and Blackfinch. Most recently, he was commercial director at Wealthtime. In his new role, French will lead P1’s commercial strategy, focusing on business development, strategic partnerships, client engagement, and growth initiatives across both investment management and platform services.

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