LONDON—Hector Sants, the CEO of the U.K. Financial Services Authority, said Tuesday that he will step down this summer.

Mr. Sants, who took the job in July 2007, said it always had been his intent to leave at the end of three years. “When I was appointed, I told the board that I planned to serve as CEO for three years, and I intend to stick to that timetable,” he said in a statement.

The FSA, part of the United Kingdom's tripartite system of regulation, was criticized for alleged regulatory failures leading to the credit crisis. The FSA shares responsibilities with the Bank of England and the Treasury under the U.K. system.

In the statement, Mr. Sants said he is “very proud of the manner in which the FSA rose to the challenge of dealing with such unprecedented turbulence across global financial markets. Moreover, I believe the FSA candidly examined the failings in financial regulation that contributed to the onset of the crisis, learned the lessons and has gone on to reform itself into a much stronger and better equipped organization.”

The FSA said it will decide soon on a course to select a successor to Mr. Sants.