When Alan Smith first decided to part company with Jardine Fleming Group after 24 years of service, he may well have been humming the Rolling Stones oldie, It's All Over Now .
His friends say yesterday's developments mean the outgoing 52-year-old chairman is likely to bow out of the finance sector, enjoying the trappings of his rumoured eight-figure annual package.
Those trappings include luxury properties in the south of France and on Lantau Island, and a jet-setting lifestyle with such pursuits as scuba-diving. There is another reason Mr Smith's thoughts might have turned to Rolling Stones numbers.
He is an avid fan of the rock group, a devotion which dates back to his school days sitting next to a fresh-faced lad named Mick Jagger.
Mr Smith and Jagger have remained close friends since their time together at Dartford Grammar School in the 1950s.
Friends said Mr Smith had frequently been sent 50 tickets or more to Rolling Stones concerts to distribute as he wished. He once flew to Tokyo especially to be present at one of the band's concerts.
