Martina Keane to lead EY financial services practice in UK and Ireland
EY has selected a new leader for its UK and Ireland financial services practice. Martina Keane takes on the role, following the promotion of Anna Anthony to the firm’s new managing partner.
Omar Ali, EY global financial services leader, commented, “Martina has made an outstanding contribution to our firm for many years, and I am so pleased that she will be our new UK and Ireland financial services leader. Martina brings a deep understanding of the financial services market, and the challenges and opportunities for our clients. She has a strong track record for developing diverse and high performing teams. I have no doubt she will draw on these strengths to build on Anna’s success, and will ensure our financial services business continues to grow, innovate and serve clients to the highest standards.”
EY’s financial services practice in the UK and Ireland consists of more than 6,000 staff, and 300 partners. It has responsibility for some of the firm’s largest clients globally, and until recently was helmed by Anna Anthony. However, after Anthony won the selection process to become EY’s UK and Ireland managing partner – becoming the first woman to hold the role across the professional services industry’s Big Four – the search has been on to find her successor.
Having been an EY partner for more than 15 years, Keane has a deep understanding of the complex challenges and opportunities facing the firm’s financial services clients. She first joined the firm in 1998, before becoming a partner in 2009, and had served as EY’s EMEIA chief operating officer for financial services since 2021.
As of the start of 2025, she will lead the practice, joining EY’s global financial services leadership team in the process. As well as her new leadership responsibilities, meanwhile, she will continue to focus on her portfolio of clients.
Keane herself added, “I’m delighted to be taking on this role, leading such a high performing and talented team across the UK and Ireland. As market conditions increasingly pick up, new technologies evolve at pace, and climate change and geopolitical risks deepen, the opportunities ahead are both exciting and pressing in equal measure. I look forward to leading our financial services business across the UK and Ireland to drive progress, purposeful growth and innovation in our industry.”
The news comes shortly after EY announced cuts elsewhere in its UK wing. The firm’s consulting practice is currently around 4,700 professionals strong, but reports in the British press suggest EY is planning 150 redundancies in the team, which are expected to impact managers, senior managers and directors.
