West Brom saviour lands important new banking role
THE former chief executive of the West Bromwich Building Society and the man credited with saving the mutual from collapse, has been named as the new chairman of Al Rayan Bank – formerly known as Islamic Bank of Britain.
Robert Sharpe was parachuted in to the West Brom in 2008 at the onset of the credit crunch by then chairman Brian Woods-Scawen following the departure of former chief executive Stephen Karle.
He succeeded in halting the society’s decline and after shoring up the business left in 2011.
His latest appointment follows the acquisition of the Birmingham-based bank in early 2014 by Masraf Al Rayan. The bank changed from the IBB in December to reflect the parent company’s brand.
In his new role, the bank said Mr Sharpe would be responsible for the effective running of its board of directors and for “promoting the highest standards of integrity, probity and corporate governance”.
Mr Sharpe brings more than 35 years of senior executive and board experience, primarily in retail banking. His expertise spans strategy and planning, corporate governance, risk management, audit and control, financial services regulation and M&A activity.
He has recently returned from the Middle East where he held several Non-Executive Directorships and board memberships at banks in UAE, Oman and Turkey. He was also Chief Executive Officer of Diners Club Credit Card Operations. In addition to his role at the West Brom, Mr Sharpe has also been CEO at Portman Building Society and Bank of Ireland in the UK.
Commenting on his appointment, Mr Sharpe said: “I am joining Al Rayan Bank at a very exciting time. The bank is strongly committed to achieving ambitious growth targets and I look forward to steering the bank along a path to even greater success.”
Sultan Choudhury, Chief Executive Officer, Al Rayan Bank, added: “Robert brings a wealth of board experience and his expertise of the retail and commercial banking sector in the UK will play a significant role in helping the bank to achieve the strong balance sheet growth it is aiming for.”
MAR invested £100m in Al Rayan Bank following the acquisition last year, which has enabled it to significantly boost its capabilities and resources. These include senior management appointments, investment in its IT infrastructure and strengthening of its product range, to encompass Sharia compliant real estate finance, commercial and development finance and a private banking offering for customers based in the GCC region. The bank will soon be opening a new flagship branch in Knightsbridge to support its private banking operations.
Al Rayan Bank opened its doors in 2004 as the UK’s first wholly, Sharia compliant retail bank. The bank currently has over 50,000 retail, business and premier customers and has earned a reputation for providing innovative products which appeal to people of all faiths.
