Anne Boden, founder of Starling Bank, is to step aside as CEO.
Boden will be replaced on a temporary basis from 30th June by John Mountain, Starling鈥檚 COO, while a search commences for a permanent replacement.
Describing the last decade as 鈥渁ll-consuming鈥�, she said separating her roles as founder and CEO is in the bank鈥檚 鈥渂est interests鈥�.
She will remain on the board as a non-executive director.
The move comes as Starling reports revenue of 拢453 million for the year to 31st March 2023, more than double last year鈥檚 figure of 拢216m, and a six-fold increase in pre-tax profits to 拢195m.
鈥淲hen I started Starling in 2014, I was told no one ever starts a bank, nobody wins market share and you鈥檒l never make a profit. Today鈥檚 results prove them wrong,鈥� said Boden.
鈥淲e鈥檝e succeeded in disrupting an entire industry. I鈥檓 immensely proud of these results, which are a testament to how far we have come as a team and how fast we鈥檝e moved as a business.
鈥淚 have spent nearly a decade here as both the founder and CEO, a dual role which is unique in UK banking. It鈥檚 been all-consuming and I鈥檝e loved every minute of it.
鈥淣ow that we have grown from being an aspiring challenger to an established bank, it is clear the roles and priorities of a CEO and a large shareholder ultimately differ and require distinct approaches. As Starling continues to evolve and grow, separating my two roles is in the bank鈥檚 best interests.
鈥淗anding over my responsibilities to John Mountain will enable me to focus on my position as a shareholder, championing Starling and ensuring we hold true to our values and vision of changing banking for the better.
鈥淭o the team, thank you. Together we have revolutionised the face of banking. To our 3.6 million customers 鈥� thank you for believing in and trusting us.鈥�
The bank reported total lending of 拢4.9 billion, versus 拢3.3bn previously, while customer deposits increased 17% to 拢10.6bn.
David Sproul, chair of Starling Bank, said: “Anne is a brilliant and inspirational leader. She has built Starling from nothing and has led it to become the UK’s leading digital bank in the space of just eight years. It is an astonishing achievement and we all owe her a huge debt of gratitude.
鈥淥ne of Anne鈥檚 great strengths is building extraordinary talent. We are confident that Starling is well-positioned for its next phase of growth and the bank鈥檚 relentless focus on our customers will not change.
鈥淚 am looking forward to working with John Mountain as we continue to grow and to retaining Anne鈥檚 vision and expertise on the Board.
“I am delighted to end the year with such strong growth, built on the foundation of a solid and low-risk balance sheet and a tight control over costs. This demonstrates the strength of our business model and the advantages of our market-leading consumer brand.鈥�
Mountain added: 鈥淎nne has created a company that I鈥檓 really proud to work in and is genuinely different. What makes Starling stand out is that we鈥檝e succeeded in making it both customer-led and technology-led throughout. We鈥檝e firmly established a sustainable business model and I look forward to continuing our work of changing banking for good.鈥�
Starling has begun an international search for a permanent CEO.