UK challenger bank Starling opts for Ovo man as CEO

Starling Bank, the UK challenger bank, has appointed an executive who “can take Starling into its next phase of growth", according to its founder. Starling has appointed Raman Bhatia, the CEO of energy supplier Ovo, as its new CEO.

Bhatia, who will take up his role in the summer, replaces internal appointment John Mountain who has been interim CEO since the bank’s founder Anne Boden quit the role in June last year.

Bhatia, 45, has also previously been head of the digital bank for HSBC’s Retail Banking and Wealth Management business in the UK and Europe, as well as being a member of its Executive Committee. This included responsibility for HSBC, First Direct and M&S Bank.

Starling, which was founded in 2014, has more than four million personal and business accounts and is a profitable business.

It said the new CEO had a “wealth of consumer tech and fintech expertise”.

Starling said:

“He has worked in both scaled, regulated businesses and entrepreneurial challengers. This, coupled with his experience at OVO of navigating one of Britain’s leading digitally driven disruptor brands through a period of significant change, makes him an ideal leader of Starling."

Boden, who is still a Starling non-executive director, has previously said she wanted the challenger bank to go public.

David Sproul, chair of Starling Bank, told The Times:

“Ultimately it does make sense for this bank to be a listed bank but we’ll deal with that when the time is right and that’s not a priority right now.”

Boden added:

"I am pleased that in Raman we have found someone who can take Starling into its next phase of growth while cherishing the culture and values we have worked so hard to instil in everything we do.

Bhatia said: 

"Starling is a company I have long admired because it believes passionately, like I do, in using the power of technology to do the right thing for its customers and its people. I can’t wait to get started and to see what we can achieve together.”