Ian Darby

Currently Chief Executive of Towergate Financial , the advisory arm of Towergate Partnership, Europe’s largest independently owned insurance intermediary, Ian’s career in financial services spans more than 25 years.

Having joined John Charcol, the UK’s leading mortgage broker in 1984 as a graduate trainee, Ian held a variety of senior positions over a 16 year period culminating in Managing Director.

Selling the business to U.S buy-out firm Warburg Pincus in 1998, and again in 2000 to Bradford & Bingley plc, Ian continued as Managing Director of Charcol before joining B&B’s main board as the director with responsibility for the group commercial functions. In 2004 he led a management buy-out of John Charcol from Bradford & Bingley, serving as Chairman until 2007.

Ian is an active investor in a range of private companies and has a successful track record of leading a wide variety of investments financed by both private equity funds and individual investor syndicates.