The Board of LHV Bank Ltd., the UK banking subsidiary of Estonia-based AS LHV Group, has appointed Damian Thompson as Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director, the company said.

Thompson's appointment is subject to regulatory approval and will join the Bank on 4 January 2027.

Thompson brings more than 35 years of UK banking experience.

After almost two decades in senior roles at NatWest Markets, he joined Starling Bank's executive team in 2021, taking responsibility for growth of the lending book as the bank grew from a start-up into one of the UK's leading digital banks.

Under his leadership, Starling's loan portfolio grew to more than GBP 5bn.

In 2023, he also became chief executive officer of Fleet Mortgages, Starling's buy-to-let lender.

The appointment is subject to approval by the Prudential Regulation Authority and the Financial Conduct Authority under the Senior Managers and Certification Regime, under which Damian has previously held a Senior Manager Function at Starling Bank. Damian Thompson and persons closely associated with him currently hold no shares in AS LHV Group.

LHV Group is the largest domestic financial group and capital provider in Estonia. LHV Group's main subsidiaries are LHV Pank, LHV Varahaldus, LHV Kindlustus and LHV Bank Ltd.

The group employs nearly 1,200 people. LHV's banking services are used by more than 514,000 customers, LHV-managed II pillar pension funds have 105,000 active customers and LHV Kindlustus provides insurance protection to 244,000 customers.

LHV Bank, a subsidiary of LHV Group, holds a UK banking licence and offers banking services to international financial technology companies, loans to small and medium-sized enterprises and retail banking services.