Antony Jenkins has been sacked as chief executive of Barclays following apparent disagreement with the board over its investment bank strategy and scale of cost cutting.

Jenkins became group chief executive in August 2012 following Bob Diamond’s departure in the wake of the Libor scandal.

John McFarlane has been appointed as executive chairman pending the appointment of a new chief executive.

The non-executive directors concluded that new leadership is required to accelerate the pace of execution going forward and that McFarlane is ideally qualified in this respect until a permanent successor is appointed. This development does not signal any major change in strategy, the board said.

Sir Michael Rake, deputy chairman and senior independent director, said: “I reflected long and hard on the issue of group leadership and discussed this with each of the non-executive directors. Notwithstanding Antony’s significant achievements, it became clear to all of us that a new set of skills were required for the period ahead. This does not take away from our appreciation of Antony’s contribution at a critical time for the company.”

McFarlane said: “Whilst it is unfortunate that I have had little time to work with Antony, I respect and endorse the position of the Board in deciding that a change in leadership is required at this time.

“Arriving at Barclays with a fresh perspective, it is evident that we have a standout brand with first-class retail, commercial and investment banking businesses. Nevertheless, we are leaving value on the table and a new approach is required. As a group, if we aspire to bring shareholder returns forward, we need to be much more focused on what is attractive, what we are good at, and where we are good at it.

“We therefore need to improve revenue, costs and capital performance. We also need to become more externally focused and deal with the internal bureaucracy by becoming leaner and more agile. I have experienced good results in dealing with these matters elsewhere.”

Jenkins said: “In the summer of 2012, I became group chief executive at a particularly difficult time for Barclays. It is easy to forget just how bad things were three years ago both for our industry and even more so for us. I am very proud of the significant progress we have made since then. Our capital position is much stronger, our business model is more balanced, we are much more disciplined on cost management, we have made good progress in rebuilding our reputation and we are seen as a leader in the application of technology to our business. While the external environment has continued to be, and will remain, challenging the group now has the resilience to overcome these challenges.

“Most of all, I am proud that we have defined our culture through a common set of values for the group and that the progress we have made and the tough decisions we have needed to take have all been achieved by applying these values and by focusing on the needs of all our stakeholders.

“I want to thank the people of Barclays for their tireless efforts and support in achieving these results and for my own part I am looking forward to the professional opportunities that lie ahead.”