TESCO bank chief executive Benny Higgins has said he is very proud of his record at the firm as he announced plans to step down months after a cyber attack on the lender affected thousands of customers.
The Glaswegian banker will leave Tesco in February after spending 10 years leading the retail giant’s banking business.
He said he wanted to leave Tesco while he still had the energy to take on another big full time job, declaring: “There’s nothing mysterious going on.”
Mr Higgins, 56, said he could join another financial services firm but would not talk about where he might go.
The news that Mr Higgins will leave Tesco comes after he was forced into the media spotlight when the bank suffered the cyber attack in November.
Tesco paid out an estimated £2.5 million to 9,000 customers who had money stolen for their accounts.
The bank temporarily froze online transactions as part of emergency security measures, and was forced to block some customers’ cards after “suspicious activity” was detected in its fraud prevention system.
“I faced into the public glare immediately,” said Mr Higgins, who noted he appeared on Radio Four before eight on the morning after the attack was detected and moved fast to ensure customers were looked after.
“Not one customer was out of pocket,” he observed.
Asked about last year’s reports that he had billed Tesco Bank £18,000 in taxi expenses during an eight-month period, Mr Higgins said: “I think that was something built hugely out of proportion.”
A former Celtic youth team footballer, Mr Higgins said there had been bumps along the road at Tesco but he had no regrets.
“It’s been a fantastic experience and one that I’m very proud of,” he said, adding: “I would have bitten someone’s hand off to get to the point we’ve achieved today in terms of serving customers and the range of services.”
Mr Higgins has overseen an increase in customer account numbers from 5.8 million to eight million, seen customer deposits rise from £5.2 billion to £8.5bn and employee numbers jump from 200 to 4,000. The Edinburgh-based bank also has major centres in Glasgow and Newcastle.
Tesco bought out Royal Bank of Scotland’s 50 per cent stake in the business in 2008. However, Mr Higgins said Tesco had effectively bought the right to build the bank from scratch.
He noted Tesco has become a major force in a UK banking sector dominated by high street giants, with big positions in markets such as credit cards.
But Tesco has been hampered in its efforts to grow the current account business it launched in 2014.
“The only thing I wish had happened was that we had a market for current accounts that was more authentically competitive with greater transparency,” said Mr Higgins, who is also strategy director for Tesco group.
He added: “People don’t know how much they pay for current accounts.”
Tesco chief executive Dave Lewis, said: “Benny has steered Tesco Bank to the strong position it is in today.
“The strong growth in customers, deposits and lending is down to his leadership. It has been a pleasure having him on the leadership team.”
Mr Higgins earned £2.1 million last year.
Once captain of a Celtic youth team which starred Charlie Nicholas, he moved into banking after gaining a 1st in Mathematics from Glasgow University.
Mr Higgins held senior roles at Royal Bank of Scotland and Standard Life and the former HBOS before joining Tesco Bank. Career highlights included playing a key part in Royal Bank’s £21bn hostile takeover of NatWest in 2000 and the subsequent integration of the retail arm.
He started a four year term as unpaid chairman of National Galleries of Scotland this month.
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