Andrew Bailey, the chief executive of the Financial Conduct Authority, the regulator, has been announced as the new governor of the Bank of England. He succeeds Mark Carney, who has been in post since 2013.

The appointment of Bailey, for many years cited among the front runners for the role, was widely expected and puts a deeply experienced UK regulator in charge of the country’s monetary policy and financial system at a critical juncture, just weeks ahead of the country’s formal exit from the EU.