Mobile-only Starling Bank has named former Olympian and Santander executive Helen Bierton as head of retail banking.
Bierton represented Great Britain in archery at the Athens Olympics in 2004 and joined Santander in 2007 as head of current account acqusition, mortgages and savings, rising to become director of products at Santander Business.
At Santander she steered the launch of the first ever digital mortgage application in the UK and the first high interest current account. More recently she launched the first cashback current account for UK small and medium-sized enterprises.
With responsibility for developing Starling’s retail banking business, Bierton will be tasked with growing the bank’s customer base as well as building on its reputation for innovation and customer service.
Anne Boden, founder and chief executive of Starling Bank, said: “Adding someone of Helen’s calibre is a great endorsement. She has an impressive track record in retail banking and understands the importance of doing things differently for customers.”