Franklin Templeton has confirmed the departure of a long-serving executive.

Senior director and UK country head Ian Wilkins is leaving Franklin Templeton Investments after 16 years at the company.

He will step down on 8th December to pursue other opportunities, the company said in a management update, adding that it does not expect Wilkins’ departure to cause disruption to UK clients while it looks for a replacement. It said the UK remains a key market where it sees “significant” growth opportunities and continue to invest strategically.

In the meantime, Alex Brotherston, the company’s head of retail sales and Jill Barber, head of institutional, who have been leading distribution teams in the UK, will report to Vivek Kudva, managing director for Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

In other changes, Michel Tulle, who joined Franklin Templeton back in 1995, has been appointed senior director, Southern Europe and Benelux, replacing Sergio Albarelli who is leaving the company at the end of this month. Tulle has been senior director – Americas since 2002 and leaves behind a four-strong management team, responsible for distribution across the sub-regions of South America, North America, Central and Brazil. They will report to Andrew Ashton, managing director for the Americas.

Currently based in Buenos Aires, Tulle will relocate to Franklin Templeton’s Paris office in January 2017. He will report to Kudva.