Salford-based investment platform AJ Bell has announced that Billy Mackay has been appointed managing director of its adviser platform AJ Bell Investcentre.

Mackay will begin his new role in October 2021 with current managing director Fergus Lyons taking up an advisory role to help oversee the development of Touch by AJ Bell, a simplified platform for advisers delivered to clients via a mobile and tablet app.

Touch will continue to be led by Dave Tanner as managing director.

Mackay has been marketing director of AJ Bell Investcentre for 13 years, during which time its assets under administration have grown to £44.2 billion.

Mackay has been involved in financial services for over 31 years in a variety of sales and marketing roles, and is a regular press commentator on pensions and platform issues.

AJ Bell CEO Andy Bell said: “Billy has been an integral part of AJ Bell Investcentre’s growth over the past 13 years and will be familiar to many adviser firms.

“This appointment is part of a long-planned succession strategy and is a natural step for Billy and the business.

“I’d like to take this opportunity to thank Fergus for the huge contribution he has made to the growth of AJ Bell over the past 21 years and I’m looking forward to continuing to work with him on the launch and development of Touch by AJ Bell.”

Mackay said: “It is a huge honour for me to be taking on the managing director role of AJ Bell Investcentre.

“I’ve been very fortunate to work closely with Fergus and Andy over the last 13 years.

“Everyone at AJ Bell Investcentre has worked tirelessly to create a platform that never stands still, driving growth with strong momentum in terms of users and asset flows.

“I’m looking forward to leading the team in the next phase of this journey.”