U.K.-based price comparison site operator Moneysupermarket.com Group PLC has begun the search for a new chairman ahead of the implementation of new rules aimed at limiting chairs' status as independent directors, Sky News reported Dec. 15.

The firm has hired headhunters to identify a candidate to replace Bruce Carnegie-Brown, who has served as its chairman since April 2014 but has been a member of its board for nearly nine years, the report noted.

Under the changes to the U.K. Corporate Governance Code, which will take effect in January 2019, chairs of listed firms will no longer be able to remain in their post beyond nine years from the date of their first appointment to the board. The previous rules have allowed chairs to restart the clock on their nine-year limit upon taking on the role, Sky News added.

Carnegie-Brown also serves as chairman of insurance market Lloyd's of London and is the lead independent director at Spain's Banco Santander SA.