New challenger bank GBB appoints Sue Hayes as chief executive officer

GBB, a new bank focused on lending to underserved regions of the UK, has announced the appointment of Sue Hayes as its CEO. GBB will be a dedicated lender to SME property developers in key underserved UK regions, with a focus on regional property developers, initially in the North East, and will support the levelling up agenda and help get Britain building again.

Hayes joins as Chief Executive Officer to lead it through the regulatory process of becoming a bank and brings a wealth of financial services and fintech experience, having spent more than three decades in banking working for some of the largest established players and fastest growing challengers.

Throughout her career, Hayes has championed the customer through the development of innovative products and solutions by placing customer experience at the heart of proposition development.

Prior to GBB, Hayes led the retail finance business at challenger bank Aldermore, one of the first wave of challenger banks. She also held executive positions at HBOS and ran retail and business banking at Santander before moving to Barclays Bank where she led business banking, comprising over a million customers and 4,000 colleagues.

Hayes’s appointment is another coup for GBB and follows the appointment of Non-Executive Chairman, Paul Rippon, who co-founded two digital banks, Monzo and Starling.

GBB is currently in the process of gaining a banking licence and in 2020 was delighted to announce it had secured £20 million investment from the Teesside Pension Fund (TCF).

Upon launch, GBB, headquartered in Middlesbrough, intends to get Britain building by providing property development loans of between £1 million and £5 million, with 90% of lending supporting regional property developers, small and medium sized businesses, and construction companies. It aims to lend £3 billion over five years building a £1 billion plus balance sheet. It will fund almost 20,000 homes and several million square feet of office space, supporting the creation of over 100,000 jobs. For savers, competitive fixed rates will be protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS).

Sue Hayes, chief executive officer, GBB said: “Accessing finance still remains a challenge for many developers and it’s my ambition to make that a much easier, more straightforward process. However, GBB’s purpose goes beyond lending money and that’s why I joined. Our team is passionate about supporting property developers in areas that have been forgotten about. We want to drive and support the movement to level up the North, get Britain building again, creating more homes and spaces, and drive economic prosperity for all.

“I am delighted to join an incredibly passionate, talented and committed team who are all united by our purpose and I’m very much looking forward to the exciting journey ahead.”

Paul Rippon, GBB’s non-executive chairman, said: “I’m delighted to welcome Sue as CEO of GBB. As a well-respected leader in financial services and a staunch customer champion, I could not be more thrilled to have her lead GBB as we set our sights on launching later this year. Her energy, passion and experience mean we will supercharge our success and I know GBB is going to have a real impact under her leadership.”

Sue’s appointment is subject to regulatory approval and GBB is expecting to launch in the second half of 2021 following approval of its banking licence application.

For more information and to follow our journey please visit www.thegbb.co.uk.