Jones steps down to make way for new patsystems chief

London-based derivatives trading systems vendor, patsystems, has hired Kevin Ashby as chief executive with effect from September 1. Ashby replaces David Jones, who survived a vote of no confidence in March only to announce his decision to resign a few weeks later.

Previously, Ashby was chief executive of WISe, a not-for-profit organisation developed and owned by the insurance and reinsurance industries to facilitate electronic commerce. Prior to this he was an IT partner for KPMG, and director of IT at London-based supply chain management company, TDG. Ashby has also held marketing-related positions with information technology companies, including IBM.

The vendor has sought a new chief executive since April. Since he replaced Jacques de Cock in September last year, Jones has restructured the firm substantially. He renegotiated the majority of its existing exchange connectivity contracts and signed up two new Chicago-based clients – Cargill Investor Services and Spike Trading. Jones will continue as a director, focusing on business development strategy, and will return to a non-executive role when the work is completed.

An old hand at developing trading platforms, Jones founded ShareLink, the telephone and internet stockbroker, which at its peak had a business database of more than a million private investors and corporate clients, before it merged with Charles Schwab in 1995. He has also served as a board member of the London Stock Exchange and Bank of England Crest settlement organisation.

"At the time of my appointment as interim chief executive, we stated our strategy was to refocus the business back to its core activities. This process is nearing completion,” Jones said. “We also stated at the time that I would be taking on the role of chief executive as a temporary measure, and that at an appropriate time we would seek to find a suitable permanent replacement candidate.”