Wikipedia

Anne Boden

Anne Elizabeth Boden MBE (born January 1960) is a Welsh tech entrepreneur. She is the founder and former CEO of Starling Bank and the first woman to found a British bank.[1][2] In 2018, she received an MBE for services to financial technology.[3]

Anne Elizabeth Boden
MBE
BornJanuary 1960 (age 64)
Swansea, Wales
Alma materSwansea University
Middlesex University
Occupation(s)CEO and founder of Starling Bank
3 minute Welsh Government video of Anne Boden introducing herself and Starling Bank; July 2020.

Early life

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Boden was born in Bon-y-maen a suburb of Swansea, the daughter of a steelworker and a department store worker.[1] She attended Cefn Hengoed Comprehensive and graduated from Swansea University in 1981[4] with a degree in Chemistry and Computer Sciences.[5] Boden reportedly spent much of her childhood reading.[6] After the financial crisis, Boden sold her house in Swansea where she spent her weekends, in order to raise funds and hire staff at her company.[5]

Career

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After graduating, Boden had intended pursue a career in information technology, but accepted a job as a graduate trainee with Lloyds Banking Group.[4][5] She went on to work at Standard Chartered Bank, UBS, and as Chief Information Officer at AON Corporation.[7] Boden later joined ABN AMRO and RBS, serving as Head of EMEA and as head of Global Transaction Banking.[7] At the group, she ran a payments business across 34 countries.[8] Boden earned her MBA from Middlesex University in 1990 while working for Standard Chartered.[9]

In 2011, she served on the Board of Governors of Middlesex University, which awarded her an honorary doctorate degree in July 2018.[10]

She joined Allied Irish Banks in 2012 as Chief Operating Officer to help the bank recover from the financial crisis of 2008.[11][12]

Starling Bank

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Boden founded Starling Bank in June 2014, originally named Possible Financial Services, with the tagline "Bank Possible".[13] Her objective was to create an entirely on-line bank that gave easier feedback to customers.[14]

In February 2015, co-founder Tom Blomfield departed Starling to found the bank Monzo.[15] The other four directors left with him.[14]

The company rebranded as Starling Bank in January 2016 and received its banking license in the UK that year.[13][16] The Telegraph described the company as "the Amazon of banking" after it received multiple investments from Austrian-born billionaire Harald McPike.[17]

Boden lost her position as majority shareholder in the bank in July 2019 after a large investment from McPike during a series C funding round in February.[18] McPike has to date invested £75 million (for a 60% stake) in the company, followed by a £50 million share held by Merian Global Investors.[18] As of July 2019, the company had raised £233 million of investment.[18] Boden is a member of Tech Nation's FinTech Delivery Panel and has spoken at industry events such as Money20/20 and Wealth 2.0.[7]

In June 2023, Boden stepped down as Starling CEO after investor clash but retained her 4.9 per cent ownership of Starling.[19][20]

In July 2024, Boden stepped down from Starling's board to focus on developing a new artificial intelligence business.[21]

In 2020, Boden became a member of the board of the trade association for the UK's banks and financial services companies, UK Finance, and also an advisor to the UK government's Board of Trade.[14] She is also a member of the World Economic Forum.[22]

In 2020, Boden published the book Banking On It: How I Disrupted an Industry.[23]

Boden is the chair of the government's 'Women-led High-Growth Enterprise Taskforce'.[24]

Awards

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Starling's Anne Boden named CEO of the year at the Digital Masters Awards in 2020.[25]

In July 2023, Boden was awarded an honorary doctorate by Swansea University, from which she had earned her bachelor's degree.

References

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  1. ^ a b Driscoll, Margarette (8 October 2019). "Anne Boden, Starling CEO, on how she went from banker to fintech entrepreneur in midlife". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
  2. ^ "The first woman to found a British bank". fintechmagazine.com. 6 July 2023. Retrieved 8 July 2023.
  3. ^ "The 38 coolest women in UK tech". Business Insider. Retrieved 8 October 2018.
  4. ^ a b "Anne Boden". Sail: 9. 2020.
  5. ^ a b c Dickins, Sarah (8 March 2018). "Steelworker's daughter who started a bank". BBC News. Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  6. ^ "Anne Boden - Swansea University". www.swansea.ac.uk. Retrieved 8 July 2023.
  7. ^ a b c "Anne Boden". Forbes. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
  8. ^ "The Future of Fintech: Advisory Board Meeting". The Telegraph. 27 April 2017. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  9. ^ "Anne Boden, Starling Bank Limited: Profile and Biography". www.bloomberg.com. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
  10. ^ "David Blunkett, Imogen Heap and Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis among Middlesex's new set of influential and inspiring honorary graduates". www.mdx.ac.uk. Retrieved 8 October 2018.
  11. ^ "Setting up bank easier than fixing broken system, says ex-AIB chief". The Irish Times. Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  12. ^ "A dynamic response to digital challenges – HCL Technologies". www.banking-gateway.com. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
  13. ^ a b "STARLING BANK LIMITED - Overview (free company information from Companies House)". beta.companieshouse.gov.uk. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
  14. ^ a b c Moore, Anna (8 November 2020). "It's crazy, but I started my own bank': the story behind Starling". The Observer. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  15. ^ "Bank Possible's future in question as Starling team flies apart". The Financial Times. 18 February 2015. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
  16. ^ Wallace, Tim (14 July 2016). "Mobile-only bank Starling wins its licence". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  17. ^ Burn-Callander, Rebecca (9 October 2018). "Starling is now the Amazon of banking. Come get an account". The Telegraph – via www.telegraph.co.uk.
  18. ^ a b c "Revealed: Starling Bank chief's stake slides as billionaire backer tightens grip". CityAM. 1 July 2019. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
  19. ^ Dunkley, Emma; Venkataramakrishnan, Siddharth (9 June 2023). "Anne Boden stepped down as Starling CEO after investor clash". Financial Times. Retrieved 8 July 2023.
  20. ^ Lunden, Ingrid (25 May 2023). "Anne Boden, founder of UK's Starling Bank, steps down as CEO". TechCrunch. Retrieved 8 July 2023.
  21. ^ Treanor, Jill (14 July 2024). "Anne Boden quits Starling Bank to focus on AI". The Times. Retrieved 14 July 2024.
  22. ^ "Anne Boden". World Economic Forum. Retrieved 24 February 2022.
  23. ^ Moore, Anna (8 November 2020). "'It's crazy, but I started my own bank': the story behind Starling". The Observer. ISSN 0029-7712. Retrieved 9 July 2023.
  24. ^ "Women-led high-growth enterprise taskforce". GOV.UK. Retrieved 16 August 2024.
  25. ^ Boland, Hannah (30 November 2020). "Starling's Anne Boden named CEO of the year at Digital Masters Awards". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 26 April 2023.
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