Embattled TSB chief Paul Pester resigns after IT issues cripple bank

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Embattled TSB chief Paul Pester resigns after IT issues cripple bank

Signs are seen outside of a branch of TSB bank in London May 27, 2014.  REUTERS/Neil Hall

Thomson Reuters

Signs are seen outside of a branch of TSB bank in London

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  • Paul Pester, the Chief Executive of TSB has stepped down on Tuesday following an IT meltdown in April that affected millions of customers and is still causing problems.
  • Richard Meddings, a former chair at the bank, will take Pester's place in the interim as they do a "full public search" for a new chief executive.
  • The news comes after British MP's put pressure on Pester to resign in June, saying that he should give "serious consideration as to whether his position was sustainable."

The chief executive of TSB, Paul Pester, has stepped down following a disastrous IT upgrade and meltdown in April, which affected millions of customers and is still causing disruption five months on.

Pester, who has headed the bank for seven years, will hand the reins to non-executive director Richard Meddings with immediate effect. Meddings will run the bank temporarily as it does a "full public search" for a new chief executive.

Meddings admitted the IT problems were yet to be fully resolved as he announced the departure of Pester. Over the weekend there was another systems outage which hit thousands of customers.

"Although there is more to do to achieve full stability for customers, the bank's IT systems and services are much improved since the IT migration," Meddings said.

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"Paul and the board have therefore agreed that this is the right time to appoint a new chief executive for TSB. Our goal is therefore to allow a full search to commence, without any distractions, enabling TSB to build for the future."

The news comes months after British MP's put pressure on Pester to resign in June, saying that he should give "serious consideration as to whether his position was sustainable."

Pester said, "The last few months have been challenging for everyone at TSB. However, I want to thank all my colleagues across TSB for their dedication and commitment during this period and for their focus on putting things right for TSB customers."

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