UK Finance makes four new board appointments

Debbie Crosbie, Chief Executive Officer, Nationwide Building Society; Christopher Beatty, Chief Operating Officer EMEA, Morgan Stanley; Richard Fearon, Chief Executive Officer, Leeds Building Society; and Vicky Davies, Chief Executive Officer, Danske Bank UK, have joined the Board.

Crosbie was appointed as CEO of Nationwide Building Society in June 2022, building on over 25 years of financial services leadership. Previously, Debbie was CEO of TSB bank, after serving as Group Chief Operating Officer at Clydesdale Bank/ CYGB. She is a member of the Glasgow Economic Leadership Board, the Strathclyde University Business School Advisory Board and the FCA Practitioner Panel. Debbie holds an honours degree from the University of Strathclyde and is a fellow of the Chartered Institute of Bankers.

Beatty has worked in financial services for the past 27 years and has been at Morgan Stanley since 2000, holding positions in his native New York as well as London, Hong Kong and Frankfurt. Now, he is the incoming EMEA COO Chris and a member of several executive committees and legal entity boards. Prior to this, Chris has held regional and global roles in Morgan Stanley Electronic Trading and has served as COO of Institutional Securities Group, Europe.

Fearon first joined Leeds Building Society in 2016 as Chief Commercial officer and was appointed CEO in February 2019. Richard has been a member of the UK Finance Mortgage Product & Service Board (MPSB) since 2018, Deputy Chair from 2020-2021 and chaired the MPSB for 2022/2023. Richard started his career at Oliver Wyman & Company and spent 10 years at Lloyds Banking Group in senior mortgage and savings roles.

Davies joined Danske Bank in 2012 and assumed the role of CEO in 2021 after serving as Deputy CEO since 2019. Vicky has 18 years’ experience in senior roles in Financial Services in RBS and Danske Bank, having started her career at Accenture. Vicky is a Certified Bank Director, has an MBA from INSEAD and sits on the PRA Practitioner Panel. Vicky was recognised as one of the 2022 ‘Women to Watch’ by Cranfield School of Management. She also sits on the Board of Northern Ireland Chamber of Commerce and on the advisory Board of Business in the Community Northern Ireland.

The UK Finance Board, which is led by Chair Bob Wigley, has been developed to ensure senior and fair representation across the industry. It focuses on issues of importance to retail, SME and wholesale customers including ethics, financial inclusion, financial fraud, crime, access to markets and diversity. Importantly, the consumer voice is also represented on the board via the inclusion of a strong, independent consumer champion.

Commenting on changes to the UK Finance Board, Bob Wigley, Chair of UK Finance, said “The board and I welcome all four new additions to the UK Finance Board. Debbie, Chris, Richard and Vicky all bring a wealth of unique experience and I look forward to working with them and the wider team to continue to promote a strong and representative banking and finance sector that supports customers and underpins sustainable and inclusive economic growth.”