Finance leaders eke their way onto the Queen’s Birthday Honours list

Charlotte Crosswell leads the pack for fintech, being awarded an OBE for her work in the financial services industry.

The past year has been a tough one for everyone up and down the country, and some of those that have stepped up to the plate in the world of financial services have been recognised.

Most notably in the world of fintech, Charlotte Crosswell, the former CEO of Innovate Finance, received an OBE for her work in financial services. 

At the helm of Innovate Finance, Crosswell played a pivotal role in accelerating the adoption of fintech in the UK and was co-Secretariat to the landmark Kalifa Review, which laid out a series of policies to strengthen the fintech industry here in the UK.

When the list was released on Saturday, Crosswell tweeted: “Thrilled to receive a Queen’s Birthday Honours OBE for my work in financial services.”

“Thanks to everyone for the support along the journey, especially the brilliant team at @InnFin. I will continue working on financial innovation to empower consumers and businesses across the UK.”

Other prominent figures in the financial services industry to have received an OBE in this year’s birthday honours include Hannah Bernard, head of business banking at Barclays, for services to financial services during Covid-19.

John Freeman Collins, chief legal and regulatory officer at Santander and Jasjyot Singh, managing director of consumer and business banking at Lloyds Banking Group, also both received an OBE for services to financial services during Covid-19.

Reshma Sohoni, co-founder of Seedcamp, and Carlos Eduardo Espinal, managing partner of Seedcamp both received MBEs for services to the British Technology Entrepreneurship Ecosystem.

Antonio Horta-Osorio, former CEO of Lloyds Banking Group, received the top nod in this year’s honours list. 

Horta-Osorio has received a knighthood for his work in the financial services sector and voluntary services to mental healthcare and to culture. 

Within his first year at Lloyds, Hota-Osorio famously stepped back from the top job for a month citing exhaustion, at the time he was one of the most high profile people to have taken an extended sick leave for mental health reasons.

Other fintech leaders to have received a nod in the Queen’s Honours List include Anne Boden, CEO and founder of Starling Bank, who received an MBE in 2018 for services to financial technology.

Peer-to-peer lending pioneers Giles Andrews, founder of Zopa, and Samir Desai, founder and CEO of Funding Circle were awarded an OBE and CBE respectively, back in 2015. 

Rhydian Lewis, co-founder and chief executive of the now-defunct RateSetter was also given an OBE in June 2017.