Bill passed away peacefully on 2 January 2021.
He was one of the ‘founding members’ of the ACT and was present at the inaugural meeting in January 1979. As one of these pioneers he was instrumental in shaping the ACT. He was an elected member of Council from 1979 to 1983 and again in 1989 to 1991. He was also on the Programme Committee and launched the very successful events series - Currency Management Seminars - in 1994.
Bill started his career in a Scottish local authority before moving to Esso Petroleum where he was Chief Cashier. He then moved to British Steel Corporation where he was Assistant Treasurer and then Treasurer. His final role was as Treasurer of GKN.
Mike Bryant writes “I first met Bill in the 1970s when we arranged a trade bill of exchange facility to help finance BLMC steel purchases from British Steel Corporation. Bill was Assistant Treasurer then Treasurer of BSC from 1970 to 1978 when he left to become Group Treasurer of GKN until his retirement in 1991. He and I spent several years together on the Programme Committee of the ACT and he actively encouraged me to stand for Council in the 1990s. When I succeeded Bill at GKN we were both active members of the Midlands Regional Group, then run by Christopher Purser. Bill was a person who left a lasting impression on those he met, and one enduring legacy is his role in establishing the ACT so effectively.”
Christopher Purser writes: “I regarded Bill in many ways as my mentor when I first got involved in Corporate Treasury in 1980. To my mind he was very much one of the "elder statesmen" of Corporate Treasury management and of the Association. He was always patient, tolerant and friendly in spite of working for a competing organization. He started up the Midlands Regional Group of the ACT and handed it over to me when he retired. This led in turn to my election to join him on the ACT Council, where I served for six very happy years.”
He remained a lifelong member and supporter of the ACT. He will be sorely missed by the ACT and by the many friends and colleagues he met through the Association.
The ACT would like to pass on our condolences to his family and friends.
