Mike Regnier, Chief Executive of the Yorkshire Building Society has been elected as the new Chair of the Building Societies Association.  He takes up this role with immediate effect. 

Mike held the post of Deputy Chair since May 2018 and succeeds Stephen Mitcham, Chief Executive of the Cambridge Building Society.  At the same time, Mark Bogard, Chief Executive of the Family Building Society has been elected Deputy Chair of the BSA.

From May 2019, the term of office for the BSA Chair and Deputy Chair has been extended from 12 months to 2 years.  

Commenting on his election, Mike Regnier said:  “I’m very pleased to be taking on the role of BSA Chair during this exciting yet challenging time. As building societies do the vast majority of their business in the UK, they’re insulated from many of the consequences of Brexit, but not from economic uncertainty or adverse consumer confidence.  Clarity and resolution are much needed for businesses and consumers alike. 

“With a combined 25 million savers and borrowers, building societies have a crucial role to play in finding solutions for some of the very real challenges that people face.  

“One of the biggest is a lack of personal financial resilience. Research shows that 7.5 million UK workers have no savings at all and that one in six wouldn’t be able to cope with a financial emergency such as a car repair or a boiler breakdown. Money worries like these cost the UK economy up to £51 billion a year in lost productivity.  This makes financial resilience and the savings habit important to the economy too.    

“Another is housing - something we just don’t have enough of.  We know that 86% of the general public want to own a home of their own but buying a home has become increasingly challenging for first-time-buyers, those who need a larger home for a growing family and older people alike.   This is an active area of innovation amongst building societies already, with more to do.”

Ends

Contacts

Hilary McVitty, BSA Head of External Affairs Tel: 07741 984 042 hilary.mcvitty@bsa.org.uk

Notes to Editors

• The roles of Chair and Deputy Chair of the BSA are voluntary and unpaid
• 7.5 million people in work have no savings – YBS analysis of the Financial Conduct Authority’s Financial Lives Survey. https://www.fca.org.uk/
• £51bn lost productivity - Figure is based on national payroll calculated through average salaries and estimates. Cost to economy includes reduction in productivity of employees with financial worries, calculated through average days lost in unfinished tasks and poorer work quality, and additional recruitment costs.
• 86% of the UK Population want to own a home of their own – British Social Attitudes Survey
• Photographs of Mike Regnier and Mark Bogard are available from the BSA Press Office    

About Mike Regnier:

Mike joined the Yorkshire Building Society and Board as Chief Commercial Officer and Executive Director in 2014, and became Chief Customer Officer in December 2015. He was appointed Chief Executive Officer in January 2017.

Mike began his career with ten years in strategic management consulting, with a focus on Retail and Retail Financial Services. Following leadership roles at ASDA he joined the banking sector and has held senior positions at Lloyds Banking Group, where he was Personal Current Accounts and Credit Cards Director. He was Products and Marketing Director for TSB, at the time the bank launched on the high street.

Mike has a strong background in strategy and general management, mainly within the Financial Services sector. He has also served as a Board Director of Visa UK, and Chairman of the merchant acquirer LTSB Cardnet.

Mike enjoys hill walking with his family and is an accomplished saxophonist. He’s worn the same pair of cufflinks every day of his working life - they originally belonged to his great grandfather and have his initials – CG – engraved on them.

About Mark Bogard

Mark joined the Board of National Counties Building Society in 2012 as Chief Executive. He has over 20 years' experience in financial services focused on helping people make the most of their money.  In July 2014, Family Building Society was launched as a trading name of National Counties Building Society.

Prior to joining National Counties he ran Barclays' retail funds business and then built up Moneyextra, an aggregator website focused on mortgages and savings that was sold to Bristol & West Plc. The business was then merged with Chase de Vere and Willis National, two leading IFAs, and Mark was appointed as Managing Director.

From 2004 until 2012, Mark was UK Chief Executive of IFG Group plc, responsible for James Hay, a leading SIPP provider, and Saunderson House. He has an MA from Cambridge University and completed his articles with Slaughter and May before joining Schroders to work in corporate finance. In January 2013 he was appointed as a Non-executive Director of Mortgage Broker, Alexander Hall.