Spear’s Review

Ruth Leas is CEO of Investec Bank, the main banking subsidiary of Investec, a FTSE 250 company which houses the Investec Group’s non-Southern African operations, including those in the UK, US, India, Ireland and the Channel Islands.

In 2023, Investec Wealth & Investment UK, the British wealth management arm of the firm, was purchased by Rathbones for £839 million with the express goal of giving Rathbones clients access to Investec’s banking services. This appears to be part of a wider strategy to expand the bank’s reach in the UK market; it has set a target for 1,000 clients in the UK to be using at least two Investec solutions by 2030. Leas was appointed as a non-executive director of Rathbones as part of the deal.

She joined Investec in 1998 and has held a number of roles in the UK and South Africa that have helped fuel the development of the business. She moved to London in 2002 and was appointed co-head of US principal finance in 2004. In 2016, she was named executive director to the board of Investec Bank, then chief risk officer the following year. In 2019, Leas was promoted to chief executive officer. 

As a female leader within the male-dominated financial services sector, Leas is passionate about driving belonging, diversity and inclusion at a company and industry level. 

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