Tesco Bank confirms boss Higgins to quit months after cyber attack incident

BENNY HIGGINS is to step down as chief executive of Tesco Bank, just months after the lender fell victim to a cyber attack that affected thousands of customers.

The company said that Mr Higgins will retire from Tesco in February 2018 after 10 years as the lender’s boss.

Mr Higgins joined Tesco Bank in 2008 after the supermarket giant bought out Royal Bank of Scotland’’s 50 per cent stake in what was a joint venture between the two firms.

Mr Higgins said: “I am very proud of what we have achieved together and it has been a privilege to work in Tesco Bank and across Tesco for what will have been 10 years.”

However, his tenure has not been without controversy.

Last year it was reported that he had billed Tesco Bank £18,000 in taxi expenses during an eightmonth period. The chief executive, who was paid £2.1m last year, was ferried to the Royal Opera House, private members’ clubs and several plush London restaurants.

In November, Tesco Bank paid out an estimated £2.5m to 9,000 customers after it fell victim to a cyber attack.

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.

During his tenure, Mr Higgins has overseen an increase in customer account numbers from 5.8 million to eight million, seen customer deposits rise from £5.2bn to £8.5bn and employee numbers jump from 200 to 4,000 at Edinburgh, Glasgow and Newcastle.

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, and we wish him all the best in his future endeavours.”