(Bloomberg) -- Metro Bank Holdings Plc said Chief Financial Officer James Hopkinson will step down immediately and the board has begun a search for his permanent successor. 

Cristina Alba Ochoa will serve as interim CFO starting next week, according to a statement. Hopkinson, who has been in the role since September 2022, will leave the bank during the first quarter “after a period of handover,” the statement said. 

“I’d like to thank James for his support during a pivotal time for the bank and wish him success for the future,” Chief Executive Officer Daniel Frumkin said in the statement. 

Metro Bank spent the final months of 2023 securing a rescue deal that shored up confidence in its shares and finances that allowed Colombian billionaire Jaime Gilinski to take a controlling stake. The company has said it would cut around 800 jobs as part of a wide-ranging cost-cutting plan. 

Hopkinson was also a member of the firm’s board of directors, which will comprise seven members until a permanent CFO is appointed, according to the statement.

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