(Adds chairman quote and background)
LONDON, Nov 13 (Reuters) - Legal & General chairmanJohn Stewart, who has led the UK insurer and asset manager since2010, plans to retire in 2016, following the appointment of asuccessor, the company said on Friday.
Senior independent director Rudy Markham will lead thenominations committee process for the identification andappointment of a new chairman.
"I expect our Annual General Meeting in May 2016to be my last as chairman," Stewart said in a statement issuedby the company.
"We are now coming to a stage where the post-financialcrisis work has been successfully delivered: the company is nowfocused on the right markets in the UK and internationally andwell prepared for the transition to Solvency II.
Insurers are waiting for new European capital rules to comeinto force in January. The Solvency II rules are considered morestringent than existing regulation.
The Bank of England is expected to review insurers' internalmodels for measuring capital next month.
During Stewart's tenure the group has had a totalshareholder return of 399 percent, the company said.
Stewart is a member of the Court of the Bank of England andwas previously a non-executive director of the FinancialReporting Council. (Reporting by Emiliano Mellino; editing by Jason Neely)