Goodbody Stockbrokers will lose one of its most senior executives, Eamonn Glancy, this week as he retires after two decades with the firm.

Mr Glancy (56) was appointed chief operating officer at the firm in May, having previously held the long-standing position of head of wealth management.

He was among the five top beneficiaries as management and staff's stake in the company doubled in the past five years, to 49 per cent, under an earn-out clause tied to its takeover by Kerry-based financial services firm Fexco. Mr Glancy was not available for comment on Tuesday and his future plans are not known.

A company spokesman confirmed Mr Glancy was retiring. He was succeeded as head of wealth management in May by Simon Howley, previously of Goodbody's corporate finance business.

This year has been one of restructuring and refocusing at Goodbody. The company cut more than 20 positions and a “handful” of people opted for early retirement over the summer months, particularly in the wealth management division. The wealth industry has had a difficult year as rich investors remained cautious amid uncertainty over global growth, volatile asset prices and Brexit.

Mr Glancy, who joined Goodbody in 1996 as chief operating officer, returned to this position in May as the company worked on a restructuring that saw it set up a new investment banking division last month by merging its corporate finance and capital markets units.

Before joining Goodbody, Mr Glancy, a chartered accountant, worked with AIB Capital Markets, where he was responsible for group treasury and finance. At AIB, he is said to have been a key figure in the bank’s foray into the Polish market in the 1990s.