Former PwC partner Bruce Cartwright appointed new ICAS chief executive

Bruce Cartwright CA, the former partner and head of corporate restructuring, Scotland at PwC, has been appointed as the new chief executive of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland (ICAS).

An experienced ICAS committee member, having chaired the professional body’s insolvency and technical committees, Mr Cartwright succeeds Anton Colella who is leaving after almost 11 years at the helm of ICAS.

having played a leading role in key ICAS initiatives in recent years and as a member of the ICAS Council from 2008 to 2014, ICAS said that as CEO Mr Cartwright will now “advance ICAS as a modern, leading and virtual professional body”.

Having qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 1989, and following an initial period in the assurance practice at PwC, Mr Cartwright spent the vast majority of his professional career in the Big Four firm’s restructuring team.

Primarily working across the UK, he also worked in Malaysia, Central Europe and Denmark, he also experienced secondments to Royal Bank of Scotland and Carnaud Metal Box while at PwC and worked across a diverse range of industries including the insurance and property sectors, manufacturing and agri-businesses.

ICAS President, Sir Brian Souter CA, said: “Bruce’s appointment is a strong signal of the continuing ambition of ICAS to build on our established reputation both globally and in our historic heartlands in Scotland.”

The membership of ICAS has grown significantly over the last 10 years and the Institute now represents more than 21,000 Chartered Accountants in more than 100 countries around the world.

Mr Cartwright, who has been working as the executive director of policy leadership at ICAS for the last six months, said: “I am hugely privileged to become the Chief Executive of the world’s first professional body of Chartered Accountants and look forward to building on the successes of recent years to deliver on our vision of making ICAS the leading global professional community.”

“The global accountancy profession faces an unprecedented period of potential disruption. As Chief Executive of ICAS, my role is to ensure that we remain as relevant and leading in the future as we have been in the past.”

Mr Cartwright, who will assume his new role on 23 March, added: “As a CA, ICAS is close to my heart. I intend to focus upon our partnerships within the global accountancy profession; grow the membership; and build on the strength of our communities wherever our members are in the world.”