Starling appoints former HSBC CEO Colin Bell as chair

23rd Jun 2026 13:34

(Sharecast News) - Starling said on Tuesday that it has appointed former HSBC chief executive Colin Bell as its new chair with effect from 1 July.

Bell has been a Starling board member since October 2025, when he joined as an independent non-executive director and later became chair of the Starling Group Holdings Limited and Starling Bank Limited Board Risk Committees.

He will now take over as chair of both boards from David Sproul, whose departure was announced in March.

Starling said Bell brings extensive experience in commercial leadership and large-scale transformation, having served as CEO of HSBC Bank and HSBC Europe. He also has "deep expertise" in compliance and risk management, including as group chief compliance officer at HSBC and head of compliance and operational risk control at UBS.

Bell said: "It's an honour to be joining Starling as chair at a time when the business is so well positioned for its next phase of growth. David leaves behind a strong legacy - a rigorous governance framework and a deep-rooted culture that puts customers at the heart of every decision. I look forward to working closely with the board and the executive team to ensure that we scale with both pace and discipline."