TOKYO Sony Group said on Thursday its gaming chief Jim Ryan would retire next March, with group President Hiroki Totoki to become interim CEO during the search for a successor.

British-born Ryan become CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) in 2019 and oversaw initiatives including the launch of the PlayStation 5 console the following year.

"Jim no longer wants to manage the tradeoff between having a job in the U.S. and a home in the UK," SIE said in a statement.

"He has been an inspirational leader, guiding SIE though the global COVID pandemic while leading the launch of PlayStation 5 and making it PlayStation's most successful platform."

Sony has said it expects to sell 25 million PlayStation 5 consoles this financial year, in what would be a record for a PlayStation device, following the easing of supply chain snarls.

(Reporting by Sam Nussey; Editing by Chris Reese and Jamie Freed)