Diageo CEO Debra Crew has quit with immediate effect, it has emerged.  

She will be replaced on an interim basis by finance boss Nik Jhangiani, who joined the company last September from Coca-Cola Europacific partners.  

The company said that Crew had stepped down “by mutual agreement” after two years in the job. Previously chief operating officer, Crew took over the role of CEO after Ivan Menezes’ sudden death in 2023. 

The news comes at the same time as Diageo faces declining sales, particularly in Latin America. The company’s shares lost approximately 44% of their value during Crew’s tenure.  

Diageo did not give any further details on Crew’s departure but said it was maintaining forecasts for fiscal 2025 and 2026.  

At present, the company is in the middle of a turnaround drive. In May it unveiled a plan to cut $500 million in costs and make substantial asset sales by 2028.  

Fred Mahon, fund manager at Diageo investor Church House, said: “Debra has had a tough couple of years at the helm of Diageo and hopefully some new leadership will help reinvigorate the company”.