Lord mayor favourite withdraws after company he worked for is investigated

By the Editorial Team · Tuesday, September 29, 2026

Tim Hailes, the frontrunner to become the next Lord Mayor of the City of London, withdrew from the election due to ongoing criminal proceedings involving a former employer, though he is not personally implicated. Bronek Masojada, former CEO of Hiscox, has been chosen as the new preferred candidate to assume the largely ceremonial role later this year.

The leading candidate to become the next Lord Mayor of the City of London has withdrawn from the selection process amid investigations related to a former employer. Tim Hailes, a former lawyer at JPMorgan Chase, stepped aside late on Sunday, just before Tuesday’s ceremonial election and less than two months before the traditional Lord Mayor’s Show in November, when the new mayor officially assumes office.

Hailes cited “criminal proceedings” involving a person closely connected to a previous employer, where he served as a director and shareholder, as the reason for his withdrawal. He emphasized that he is not personally under investigation. In a statement, Hailes said he decided to withdraw to prevent any potential harm to the City’s reputation or the mayoralty.

This marks the second occasion that Hailes has withdrawn from the mayoralty race. In 2020, he removed his name from consideration amid concerns about his availability for the role and conflicts arising from a newly acquired corporate directorship. Reports also indicated that during the interview process for the mayoralty, Hailes faced probing questions regarding his sexuality; had he been elected, he would have been the City’s first openly gay Lord Mayor.

Hailes’s extensive career includes work as a solicitor in the 1990s with Wilde Sapte and Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP. He then spent two decades at JPMorgan, where he rose to co-head of cross-border and legal regulatory strategy before stepping down in 2019. Subsequently, he served as director and general counsel for London-based blockchain company BlockThree Holdings until 2024 and was listed as a 10 percent shareholder in the firm according to the City of London’s register of interests.

Since 2013, Hailes had been an alderman for the City of London Corporation, part of the historic municipal governance structure. The Lord Mayor’s office, which dates back to 1189, is a one-year, largely ceremonial position focused on representing and promoting the financial district known as the Square Mile.

Following Hailes’s withdrawal, the City of London’s Court of Aldermen nominations committee selected Bronek Masojada as the preferred candidate for the role of the 698th Lord Mayor. Masojada served as chief executive of the insurer Hiscox from 2000 to 2021.

This article was reported by synthesizing coverage from multiple independent news outlets to present a balanced, unbiased account. Read about our editorial standards. Spotted an error? Let us know.