IG Group’s senior tech leadership has undergone a shake-up, with both Group CTO David Perry and UK & Ireland CTO Qaiser Mazhar departing the FTSE 250 brokerage. Their exits come amid a broader corporate reorganization at the firm following a challenging financial period. They also come at a time when AI talent is highly sought after across the industry.
London’s trading industry is coming home!
Perry joined IG in late 2025 from Vemi Money, a fintech banking startup, where he served as Group CTO following his role as founder of the digital currency platform Ziglu.
Mazhar joined from UK online supermarket Asda, where he served as Chief Product and Technology Officer, having previously held senior technology roles at Wowcher, Marks & Spencer, and Goldman Sachs.
While IG did not confirm their departure, Perry’s LinkedIn profile has an “open-to-work” banner, while Mazhar has been more explicit, posting a farewell post and indicating he is moving to healthcare startup Numan.
Modernising IG’s Infrastructure
Despite their short tenures, information from LinkedIn reveals that both executives focused on modernising IG’s legacy architecture into an AI-enabled infrastructure.
Reflecting on his exit, Mazhar noted his work establishing an “AI native PDLC [Product Development Life Cycle],” designed to enable “real AI-enabled speed improvements… and not just piling up stuff to go through approvals.”
Meanwhile, Perry described his tenure at IG as “translating AI from experimentation into practical engineering and delivery capability, while maintaining appropriate controls across architecture, security, compliance and quality.”
In 2026, IG Group’s broader investments in automation across its global operations include a partnership with compliance platform Adclear to deploy AI across its marketing operations, aiming to accelerate promotional approvals amid growing regulatory scrutiny.
Additionally, IG Group’s Australian division enabled traders to connect directly to ChatGPT by introducing its CFD Assistant to the ChatGPT App Store.
The company is also preparing to roll out a unified app, known simply as IG, combining trading, investing, and crypto functionality into a single ecosystem.
Corporate Restructuring and Market Pressures
The departure of IG Group’s top two technology executives comes at a turbulent time for the FTSE 250 broker, which is currently navigating a major corporate reorganization that includes massive headcount reductions, and a 20% stock drop following a disappointing Q3 trading update.
It is unclear whether the CTOs’ exit is linked to the restructuring.
“Lower Q3 revenue reflected reduced OTC revenue retention in less supportive market conditions,” explained IG CEO Breon Corcoran, adding: “I remain confident in meeting our medium-term guidance.”
Broader Industry AI Push
The industry is actively recruiting technical leaders with explicit mandates to build AI-enabled platforms for agentic trading, automating customer support and cutting down costs.
Pepperstone recently appointed Nigel Fernandes as CTO with a mandate to “scale an AI-native engineering foundation.” Interestingly, Fernandes came directly from Xero, a cloud-based accounting software platform, where he served as SVP of Engineering. Perhaps more telling is that NinjaTrader established a new Chief Innovation and AI Officer role, which was filled by promoting CPO Brian Weis.
As the industry-wide race for AI accelerates, the available pool of specialized tech leaders may shrink much faster than brokers anticipate. However, this squeeze could also redefine where brokers source their talent, with the door swinging wide open for tech people arriving from, and departing to, sectors beyond financial services.
This article was written by Adonis Adoni at www.financemagnates.com.Retail FXRead More
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