Inchcape’s finance chief resigns after a ‘lapse of judgement’ at event

Inchcape’s chief financial officer has resigned after an “error of judgment” at a recent event.

Gijsbert de Zoeten has voluntarily resigned as chief financial officer after just over three years at one of Britain’s largest car dealership chains, which celebrates its 175th anniversary this year.

He previously held the same position at Dutch fleet management company LeasePlan and the European division of consumer goods giant Unilever, where he worked for a total of 27 years.

The FTSE 250 business did not go into great detail about his departure or where the alleged misconduct took place, other than that he displayed behavior that “did not meet the high standards expected of leadership.”

It added that his resignation was unrelated to the company’s financial results, strategy or proposed purchase of Derco, Latin America’s largest independent car retailer, for £1.3 billion.

Later today, Inchcape will also publish the circular on the acquisition of Derco, expecting it to adhere to the established timeframe for closing the transaction and full year outlook.

Adrian Lewis, the group’s financial controller, has been announced as De Zoeten’s interim successor, while the search for a permanent replacement is underway.

Inchcape Shares were down 3.9 percent at 844.5 pence as of late Monday afternoon, though their value has risen about 43 percent over the past two years.

Like other British car dealers, the London-based company benefited from a release of pent-up demand last year as customers with extra savings looked to upgrade their cars.

In addition, semiconductor shortages and other supply chain bottlenecks have led to a worldwide decline in car production, driving up the prices of both new and used engines.

Third quarter results published last month showed total organic sales growth of 16 percent year over year, helped by stronger performance in all regions, record order books in some territories and .

Founded in Calcutta in 1847, Inchcape sells vehicles in more than 40 markets, including the United Kingdom, where it operates approximately 100 locations and sells more than 80,000 cars annually from brands such as Porsche, Mercedes, Jaguar and Lexus.

After the invasion of Ukraine in February, the company sold its Russian assets, which had generated £740 million in revenue last year, about 10 percent of its total turnover.

The company has said it expects to incur an estimated pre-tax non-cash loss of £240 million from the transaction, of which approximately £140 million will come from exchange rate losses.

Despite this, Inchcape raised its full-year profit forecast, telling investors it expects adjusted pre-tax earnings from continuing operations to be either at the high end or “slightly above” the expected range of £350m to £370m.