New chair to form all-female leadership duo at Virgin Money

Virgin Money has announced the appointment of Irene Dorner as independent non-executive director and chair elect to its board of directors.

The bank revealed in October that it was in talks to hire Dorner, who will now join from HSBC where she held many roles, including chief executive of HSBC USA.

Previous to HSBC she has also been a non-executive director at French insurer AXA and British engineering group Rolls Royce.

She will join chief executive Jayne-Anne Gadhia on the board to form an all-female leadership team at the lender which has a considerable workforce based in Edinburgh.

Dorner takes up her roles as chair of the board and chair of the nomination committee on 1 April, following Glen Moreno’s retirement as a director and chair on 31 March.

Norman McLuskie, senior independent director of Virgin Money, said: “Irene had a long and successful career at HSBC, including running its operations in Malaysia, and culminated in becoming President and CEO of HSBC in the United States. She also has a strong background in risk management. We look forward to benefitting from her vast experience.”

“The Virgin Money Board would also like to express their gratitude to the outgoing Chair, Glen Moreno. Glen has been a great source of support, counsel and guidance for the Board over the past three years and we would like to wish him all the best for the future.”

Jayne-Anne Gadhia, chief executive of Virgin Money, said: “I am delighted that Irene will be joining Virgin Money as Chair, bringing the Board and executive management team a wealth of retail banking experience. I would like to thank Glen Moreno for his invaluable contribution to the Board. We will miss him and we wish him well in the future.”

Outgoing chair, Glen Moreno, added: “Irene brings a wealth of experience and expertise in banking and financial services and I am confident that she will take Virgin Money forward successfully in the years ahead. I am proud to be leaving a strong and diverse Board.”