City veteran steps down from charity role

DANNY TRUELL, the City grandee heading up investments for Britain’s biggest charity, the Wellcome Trust, has stepped down from his executive role for undisclosed health reasons.

Mr Truell is credited with driving the foundation’s rapid growth since joining in 2005, helping it more than double its donations to £1 bn a year. During his tenure, the charity’s endowment grew from £12.3bn to £20.9bn.

Wellcome backs cutting-edge science, including the search for cures for deadly diseases. Mr Truell will step aside as managing partner and chief investment officer at Wellcome’s investments division from the start of October. He was the UK’S highest-earning charity worker, on more than £3m. He will take up a non-executive position as emeritus partner.

The investments division’s two other joint managing partners, Nick Moakes and Peter Pereira Gray, have been promoted to new roles and will continue to lead the fundraising arm.

Mr Moakes, a former Blackrock investor, has been at Wellcome for 10 years and becomes chief investment officer. Ex-prudential director Mr Gray has been named chief executive of the division after 16 years at the charity. Their appointments follow a review by headhunters David Barrett Partners.