John Phillipou from Paragon Bank is new FLA Chair

John Phillipou, Managing Director of SME Lending at Paragon Bank has been named as the new Chair of the Finance & Leasing Association. He succeeds Rebecca McNeil, CEO of Close Brothers Retail, who has held the post since 2021.

With a career spanning over 25 years in business lending both in the UK and globally, and extensive experience in the asset finance sector, John has held roles with Bank of Scotland, JCB Finance, Citigroup and as International MD for Deutsche Leasing and CEO for PEAC Finance. John joined Paragon as Managing Director of SME Lending in 2019.

Stephen Haddrill, Director General of the FLA, said: “On behalf of the Board and the FLA staff, I would like to thank Rebecca McNeil for her service during the last two years. Her time as Chair provided great leadership and vision. We are delighted to welcome John into this role, and excited to see the contributions he will make to the membership and the wider industry.”

John Phillipou added: “I’m proud to have been appointed Chair of the FLA. The industry is on the verge of significant change in the coming years through technology advancements and I am looking forward to playing a role in its evolution, ensuring that the sector’s voice is heard with policymakers and raising its profile with industry.”

John has been an active participant in the asset finance community, being a board member of the FLA since March 2020 where he is leading the proposed changes to the management of broker reviews, among other things.

A regular speaker at Asset Finance Connect Conferences, John is an active proponent of establishing a register of asset finance borrowing in the UK.

His appointment comes at a time of change for the industry, with many issues confronting the sector: member concerns about the increasing cost and risk associated with compliance; the next phase in the implementation of the new Consumer Duty; dealing with the unintended legal consequences of regulatory changes, e.g. relating to DIC; addressing regulatory concerns around commission disclosure and appointed representatives; managing the longer term vision as the industry participates in the preparatory work leading up to the review of the Consumer Credit Act; and developing a vision for the asset finance industry as it evolves, to embrace opportunities from technology, to meet changing customer needs, to manage the increasing involvement of government and regulators in the finance industry, and to embrace new values which add new objectives including sustainability, social and governance goals alongside commercial interests.