Zopa backers join board after P2P lender gains bank licence
Zopa has shaken up its board, after gaining its long-awaited full bank licence earlier this week.
The world’s oldest peer-to-peer lender has appointed three directors to its group board, Jeppe Zink, Scott Jones and Nicholas Aspinall, all of whom work at shareholders of the company.
Zink is a general partner at early stage venture capital firm Northzone and his active portfolio includes Zopa.
Aspinall is an investment director of the Zopa shareholder IAG Silverstripe, which recently put up the capital needed for the firm to gain its bank licence.
And Jones is listed as a director of Silverstripe Advisers on Companies House.
Meanwhile, Tim Levene, chief executive of another Zopa backer, Augmentum Fintech, has stepped down after eight years as an investors director.
Chief executive Jaidev Janardana has stepped down as a director of Zopa’s P2P business, although he remains a director of Zopa Group.
The board changes were disclosed in Companies House documents and confirmed to Peer2Peer Finance News via email.
The board shake-up comes as Zopa gained its full UK bank licence, paving the way for the official launch of its new digital bank later this year.
“There is a new board composition as a result of the bank launch and Silverstripe investment completion,” a spokesperson from Zopa said.
Read more: How Zopa Bank can crack the savings market
Earlier this month, Zopa Group board member Charles Birnbaum, partner at Bessemer Venture Partners, stepped down after nearly three years in the role.