Published: October 4, 2016
Moves and hires at Currencies Direct, BlackFin Capital Partners and Standard Chartered.
Antony Jenkins joins Currencies Direct as non-executive Chairman
Jenkins’ experience expected to drive Currencies Direct’s digital offering and international expansion.
Currencies Direct, the leading UK non-bank provider of foreign exchange and international payment services, appointed Antony Jenkins, formerly CEO of Barclays, as non-executive chairman. He will focus on further advancing Currencies Direct’s digital offering and expanding its existing international footprint, supporting the company’s strong growth potential.
For three years, until July 2015, Antony led Barclays as CEO. Prior to that role, he was the head of the bank’s UK retail and small business division, and Barclaycard. Antony also spent 17 years at Citi where he ran the North American cash management unit, managed the company’s Internet activities and was in charge of the Citi branded credit card business.
At Barclays, he was influential in the launch of the company’s Pingit mobile payments app, and harnessing the power of technology has been a powerful theme throughout Antony’s career.
“New technologies are revolutionizing financial services, creating substantial opportunities for companies with a digital strategy at their core, a deep understanding of the needs of the customer and the right values. Currencies Direct is successfully capitalising on the fast-growing demand for digital financial services offerings, and has a sound strategy combined with the infrastructure to continue its rapid expansion” says Jenkins, group chairman of Currencies Direct.
I am excited at the prospect of joining the leadership team of Currencies Direct and look forward to helping fulfil its considerable potential.
This appointment is another signpost in the growing competition between banks and non-bank financial services providers. Banks will need to gear up for a battle over market share for global transfers. Bain & Co estimates the revenue opportunity for international payments to be somewhere between US$150 and US$200 billion annually.
“Antony is one of the most innovative and proven executives in financial services. He will be an invaluable member of our team as we continue to strengthen our market leading position in foreign exchange services. Currencies Direct plans to boost its share of the growing £380bn currency market for retail and small and medium-sized enterprises in the UK, while also expanding its existing market presence in Continental Europe, Australia, South Africa, China, India and the US,” said Keith Hatton, CEO of Currencies Direct.
“Antony’s knowledge, reach and insights into how technologies are changing the industry will play a major role in driving the growth of Currencies Direct.”
Currencies Direct provides consumers and businesses a simple, fast and secure means to transfer money overseas. Its focus on providing competitive exchange rates with no transfer fees through a customer-centric service model has enabled it to rapidly take market share from traditional banks. The company is jointly owned by private equity investors Corsair Capital and Palamon Capital Partners and its management team.