Masthaven appoints CEO as founder steps down

Masthaven Bank has appointed Leigh Bartlett as chief executive, with previous CEO and founder Andrew Bloom stepping down to a non-executive director role.

Bartlett has been promoted from chief financial officer. She first joined the bank from technology company FNZ in May 2019, while she has previously held CFO positions at Williams & Glyn, Westpac Banking Corporation, Direct Line Group, Royal Bank of Scotland and Alliance & Leicester.

Bartlett said: “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.

“Masthaven remains open for business with the financial backing of Värde Partners and our retail savings deposits, which has proven invaluable during this time. Masthaven is a key player in the UK specialist banking market and I’m looking forward to leading the bank as we move into the next stage of our evolution.”

Bloom said: “Masthaven has been a major part of my life over the past 15 years.

“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 [Hall] 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.”