Zopa Bank appoints Bruce Fletcher and Paula Walter to its Board
Zopa Bank has appointed Bruce Fletcher and Dr Paula Walter as Independent Non-Executive Directors to its Bank and Group Boards. In addition, current Board member Richard Goulding has been appointed Senior Independent Director.
The move further strengthens Zopa’s governance and technological resilience as the Bank continues its rapid growth across lending, saving, everyday banking, investments and point-of-sale products — underpinned by Zopa’s proprietary technology and AI platform.
Bruce Fletcher joins Zopa’s Risk Committee. He brings deep expertise in risk, compliance and regulation from a career spent leading risk functions at some of the industry’s largest banks, both in the UK and the US. Most recently, Bruce was Group Chief Risk Officer at NatWest Group, where he led a 1,700-strong risk and compliance function across the Group’s retail, commercial, corporate and investment banking businesses. During his tenure, he redesigned and implemented an enhanced enterprise-wide risk management framework.
Bruce is currently a Non-Executive Director and Chair of the Risk Committee at Julius Baer Group, and a Senior Advisor in BCG’s Risk & Compliance practice. Earlier in his career, he held senior risk leadership roles at Citibank and at HSBC, including acting as Chief Risk Officer for its global Retail Banking and Wealth Management business.
After nine years on the Board, Paul Cutter will step down at the end of the year, with Dr Paula Walter succeeding him as the technology-focused Independent Non-Executive Director on Zopa’s Bank and Group Boards.
Most recently, Paula served as Chief Technology and Information Officer at specialist lender Aldermore Group from 2022 to 2024 where she led the technology and data strategy, cyber and infrastructure risk remediation.
Paula is currently a Non-Executive Director and Chair of the Risk, Audit and Compliance Committee at Brightwell, an FCA-regulated pensions management firm with £36 billion under management. Previously, she held executive roles at Ruffer LLP, Newton Investment Management and Goldman Sachs.
Gordon McCallum, Chair of Zopa, said: “Bruce and Paula bring exactly the kind of experience, judgment and constructive challenge that matters as Zopa grows. Bruce has led risk and compliance at the very highest level of UK retail banking, while Paula combines deep technology and cyber expertise with the operational perspective needed to turn ambitious change into dependable outcomes for customers.
“Both have worked at the sharp end of transformation in highly regulated environments. Their experience will be invaluable as we continue to build Zopa into the Home of Money — a bank that is as trusted as a high street lender, as innovative as a technology company, but offering more value than both.
“I also want to thank Paul Cutter for his enormous contribution to Zopa’s success over the last 9 years, helping Zopa become one of the UK’s most successful growth stories. Paul has been a valued Board colleague, always thoughtful and insightful. In addition to providing support and challenge to the Executive team during a period of huge change as Zopa built its technology infrastructure, he has also continued to participate very effectively in developing our strategic agenda. I wish him well with his other roles and responsibilities”.
Paul Cutter, Zopa INED said: “It has been a privilege to be part of Zopa’s journey and to see the business grow from an ambitious challenger into one of the UK’s leading digital banks. I’m incredibly proud of what the team has achieved and confident that Zopa has an exciting future ahead. I wish the whole Zopa team every success for the next chapter.”
Bruce Fletcher, Zopa INED said: “Zopa has built a distinctive, customer-focused bank with real momentum. I’m delighted to be joining the Board and look forward to working with the team to support the Bank’s next phase of growth, while ensuring its strong focus on prudent risk management and good customer outcomes continues.”
Dr Paula Walter, Zopa INED added: “Zopa has a clear ambition to make money management simpler and better for customers, underpinned by an impressive technology platform and culture. I’m excited to join the Board and help the business continue to innovate responsibly, strengthen its resilience, and deliver exceptional customer experiences at even greater scale, supported by AI-led change and innovation.
Zopa’s rapidly expanding suite of financial products is matched by strong financial performance. It recently announced its third consecutive year of profitability, with pre-tax profits of £65 million for the financial year ending 31 December 2025.
Zopa was voted the UK’s Best App for 2026 at the British Banks Awards. One of the UK’s highest-rated and most celebrated financial brands, it has won more than 10 British Bank Awards, holds a 4.6/5 rating on Trustpilot, and consistently receives among the highest customer satisfaction scores in the industry.
