Masthaven Bank shakes up leadership with new CEO
UK challenger bank Masthaven has reshuffled its senior leadership with chief financial officer (CFO), Leigh Bartlett, stepping up to become the new CEO.
Leigh Bartlett, Masthaven Bank
Masthaven founder and previous CEO Andrew Bloom is stepping back from his day-to-day involvement at the bank to move into a non-executive directorship.
Bartlett joined Masthaven from technology company FNZ and has more than 15 years of experience as a CFO, operating principally in the financial services sector.
He has previously held CFO positions at Williams & Glyn, Westpac Banking Corporation, Direct Line Group, Royal Bank of Scotland and Alliance & Leicester.
“Masthaven Bank entered the market to work with corporate and intermediary partners to make finance accessible to growing groups of the population who were underserved by the high street lenders,” says Bartlett.
“To say this is an interesting time to be stepping up to the CEO role of the bank is an understatement.
“Nonetheless, I’ve been so impressed by the efforts of all our colleagues and our corporate and intermediary partners as we’ve rapidly transitioned to remote working and continued to serve our customers through the coronavirus crisis.”
Related: UK challenger banks – who’s who?
Previously known as Masthaven Finance, the firm received a banking licence in late 2016.
Masthaven offers lending and mortgages as well as savings products to retail customers and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that struggle to get service from mainstream banks and lenders.
For its tech, Masthaven implemented a banking system from DPR Consulting. The front-to-back office system is a fairly new product from the vendor, and Masthaven is among its first takers.
“Masthaven has been a major part of my life over the past 15 years,” says the bank’s founder Bloom.
“We have built an incredibly strong foundation and a great leadership team. I know I’m leaving the bank in safe hands with Leigh as CEO and Jon as Deputy CEO.
“As a non-executive director and significant shareholder, I will continue to assist the leadership team whenever I am needed and can add value.”
