Bath Building Society’s chief financial officer Richard Ingle is to be promoted to chief executive officer next month, replacing Kevin Gray, who has been in the role for nearly six years.
Richard, pictured, joined the society, which has more than 20,000 savers and 1,200 mortgage customers, as chief financial officer (CFO) in 2022, having previously been CFO at Bristol-headquartered sustainable bank Triodos Bank UK.
He has also held senior management positions at Nationwide Building Society in Swindon and Bank of Ireland UK in Bristol.
In his role as a board director at Bath Building Society he has been responsible for managing and reporting the financial performance of the business, as well as managing its treasury, HR and prudential risks.
He will take over as CEO, subject to regulatory approval, at the society’s board meeting on 7 March, when Kevin Gray will retire.
Richard said: “I’m honoured to be asked to take on the lead of the society as we undertake our transformation programme to serve members as a modern and sustainable mutual.
“I’m grateful to Kevin for bringing me into the society as CFO and his wise and enjoyable counsel in the time we have worked together. I wish him all the very best for his future endeavours.”
Kevin joined the society in 1998 in the position of society secretary. He was promoted to the board in 2002 and became deputy chief executive four years later.
From 2004 to 2018, he held the position of group finance director and was also head of the society’s savings team until 2012. He became chief executive in April 2018.
Bath Building Society chair Joanne Evans said Kevin had made a huge contribution to the success of the society over a long period of time and would be greatly missed.
She added: “On behalf of the board, I want to take this opportunity to thank Kevin for his very significant contribution to the society’s success over the last decades and we wish him every success in the future.
“Richard has played a significant part in the society’s transformation programme over the past two years and I am confident he will take this to the next level as our new CEO, enabling digitisation and other improvements to member service, to support sustained growth in society membership.”
The society will appoint an interim CFO ahead of Richard taking over as CEO. It will shortly begin advertising for a new CFO.
Bath Building Society was established in 1904 to offer savings and mortgages to the local community.
Today it employs more than 75 staff in its Queen Square head office and two branches in the city.
