The lender applied for the licence at the end of 2019 and was notified of the approval on 20 March.
Castle Trust is now authorised with restrictions as a bank and has entered a mobilisation period. During this period it will be required to undertake a number of actions which have been agreed with the PRA and the FCA aimed at protecting both Castle Trust and its customers.
This includes the testing of its savings system. Furthermore, Castle Trust is aiming to apply for the restrictions on its deposit taking to be lifted in time for it to start taking deposits from the public later this summer.
Martin Bischoff (pictured), chief executive, said: “The granting of authorisation with restrictions marks an important moment in Castle Trust’s story.”
New appointments
The company also announced the appointment of Richard Pym CBE as chairman. Pym’s most recent role was with Allied Irish Banks (AIB) Group, where he chaired the company through the initial public offering in 2017 and led the board through the recovery from financial crisis.
To support the next stage of its development, Castle Trust also appointed two independent non-executive directors, one of whom will take up the role of audit committee chair.
Eric Anstee has been hired as the senior independent director and chair of the audit committee. He has previously been the chair of the audit committee for OneSavings Bank, Sun Life Financial of Canada and Paypoint.
Melba Montague has also been appointed non-executive director, her last role was European banking and financial markets leader at IBM Global Business Services.
