New Chief Financial Officer Joins University of Bristol

The University of Bristol has appointed a Chief Financial Officer, in a newly-created role reporting directly to the Vice-Chancellor and President. This significant senior appointment comes at a key moment for the institution, with its ambitious strategy for 2030 entering a key delivery phase.

Currently Chief Financial Officer at the National Trust, Peter Vermeulen has broad financial experience that ranges from commercial audit and investment banking to working with charitable trusts. Peter was also a longstanding trustee for a highly successful grassroots charity in east London, ELATT. He is set to join the University of Bristol at the end of August.

At the National Trust, Peter is responsible for all aspects of IT and Finance, including procurement, risk and assurance, and pensions. He helped create an internal bank with access to £100m long term debt and restructuring working capital management, and led the divestment of the Trust’s fossil fuel investments. Peter also revised the Trust’s approach to acquisitions, negotiating a variety of innovative solutions with its partners. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he led the organisation through a £213m in-year income shortfall, introducing mitigations that secured the Trust’s sustainability during its recovery years.

Before joining the National Trust in 2016, Peter previously spent seven years at Middlesex University, where he was Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Finance. Former roles also include positions at the School of Oriental and African Studies, Merrill Lynch, Deutsche Bank and PwC.

Peter Vermeulen said: “I am thrilled to be joining the University of Bristol at such an exciting moment in its history. This is a fantastic opportunity to work with the rest of the senior leadership team in securing the university’s future, and to lead the Finance team in what is such a dynamic period, both for the national economy and the wider higher education sector. I have been inspired by the quality of the University’s students, the significance and value of its research, its civic commitments to the broader Bristol community, and the clarity of its long-term plan.”

At the University of Bristol, Peter will work in partnership with the Vice-Chancellor and President, Professor Evelyn Welch, who said: “I am delighted to welcome Peter to the University of Bristol. With major projects ranging from the new Temple Quarter Enterprise Campus, a Digital Strategy that will deliver world-class new education and research capabilities, and significant further investment in our student experience and academic excellence, this is a great time for Peter to be joining us. I look forward to working closely with him to ensure we have a robust financial strategy – one that enables the University to achieve its ambitions and secure its long-term success.”