Chetwood Financial, a new UK challenger outfit founded by the former deputy head of HSBC's UK retail bank Andy Mielczarek and tech vendor veteran Mark Jenkinson, has secured its banking licence and a significant investment of £150m in debt and equity from Elliott Advisors to help it grow.
Already in beta with its LiveLend unsecured loan, the startup plans to commercially launch the service in Q1 2018 ahead of the roll-out of its first saving products.
Joining a crowded field of banking startups, the company will operate on a new, cloud-based technology platform, Yobota, leaning on the experience of COO Jenkinson who has had previous stints at Temenos, TCA Consulting, Capco/FIS and Internet-only bank Egg.
Says Jenkinson: “Despite huge leaps in technological capability in other sectors, existing banks haven’t really changed the fundamental products they offer for decades. Yet open API banking and low-cost cloud systems present huge opportunities for the financial services industry and we’re working at the cutting edge of these areas to give customers something truly different. It’s a new model, not obsessed with owning the customer and cross-selling, but creating products that interact with the individual and their lives.”
Based in Wrexham and employing 50 staff, the company has also filled the executive seats on its board, appointing LV= chairman Alan Cook as chairman, alongside Bain & Company alumni Matt Symonds as non-executive director. They join risk committee chair Martin Hagerty and audit committee chair Emer Daley.