GB BANK has appointed an experienced and accomplished senior banking figure as its new Chair.

Mark Sismey-Durrant joins the Middlesbrough-based bank after spending over 40 years in the UK banking sector, with the majority of that time spent in senior roles.

He replaces former GB Bank Chair, Mike Kirsopp, who has stepped away from the business to return to an executive career.

For 23 years, Mark operated as CEO at three fast growing UK banks, the last of these being Hampshire Trust Bank, where he led a private equity backed management buyout, restructured and scaled the business profitably, enabling it to raise growth capital of £100m.

Prior to that, Mark served as CEO at Sun Bank and then Heritable Bank where he executed diversification strategies in the specialist lending arena, secured Tier 1 & 2 capital, grew balance sheets to £1.3bn and generated pre-tax profits of £17m and £21m respectively.

Mark is an experienced board director and has served on the board of many banking and financial services companies, including his current Chair position at digital specialist, CashPlus Bank. He is also Senior Independent Director at PCF Bank.

Speaking about his appointment, Mark said: “I’m delighted to be joining GB Bank at such an exciting time for the business and I’m really looking forward to using my experience in specialist banking to help take GB Bank forward.

“The bank was founded with a commitment to serving communities which really makes it stand out and I’m looking forward to working with all of the GB Bank team as we take the business through the next stage of its development.

“There are lots of exciting opportunities in the market which we are looking to tap into as GB Bank matures and develops beyond its highly successful launch phase into an ambitious growth stage.”

GB Bank CEO and co-founder Stephen Lancaster said: “We are thrilled to have secured Mark’s services as Chair of GB Bank.

“His vast experience and expertise are fundamental for the business as we look to progress to the next stage of our development.

“We’d also like to take this opportunity to thank Mike Kirsopp as he leaves us. Mike has been a valued and integral member of the team for almost three years, helping GB Bank in securing the full banking licence in August 2022, and the ongoing development of the business since then.

“We are incredibly grateful for Mike’s commitment to GB Bank and he leaves with our very best wishes as we welcome Mark as our new Chair.”

GB Bank is a community-focused bank which uses regional knowledge and passion to regenerate and build communities in areas that need it the most.

It provides SME property developers and investors with funding solutions up to £3m for residential and commercial developments in under-served regions across the UK.

Savers also benefit as the bank offers a no-nonsense range of fixed-term savings accounts with highly competitive rates, an easy on-line application process and peace of mind protection up to £85,000 by the FSCS.

Since securing its full banking licence in August 2022, GB Bank has approved over £73m worth of funding for more than 100 property and development projects across the country, including more than £16m on projects in the North-East.

‍