John Kemp-Welch
Sir John Kemp-Welch is a British businessman, who was chairman of the London Stock Exchange from 1994 to 2000, before which he was senior partner at City of London stockbroker Cazenove.
Career
Kemp-Welch began his career at Hoare & Co.He joined City stockbroker, Cazenove in 1959. He became joint senior partner at Cazenove in 1980. He stepped down from that position in 1994 to become chairman of the London Stock Exchange.
Less than two years after becoming chairman of the London Stock Exchange, Kemp-Welch removed CEO Michael Lawrence, whose style was said to have led to frictions with the Stock Exchange Board. From Lawrence’s departure in December 1995 to his successor joining in August 1996, Kemp-Welch acted as executive chairman. Whereas Lawrence had come from Prudential, Kemp-Welch’s choice of replacement, Gavin Casey, came from city brokerage Smith New Court securities.
Kemp-Welch also oversaw the continued modernisation of the stock exchange’s governance, in particular its demutualisation whereby it moved from a member-based institution to a shareholder-owned company.
The following month, Kemp-Welch’s successor as chairman - Donald Cruickshank - was announced, which was quickly followed by the ill-fated proposal to merge the London Stock Exchange and Deutsche Boerse.