Maria Harris, former director of intermediary lending at Atom Bank, has been appointed as a non-executive director of United Trust Bank (UTB).

In her former role at Atom Bank, Harris (pictured) was responsible for creating and launching the bank’s retail mortgages proposition and was instrumental in growing the lending book from zero to £2.3bn in two years.

She joins the board of UTB as non-executive director Alice Altmaire leaves to take up her new role as CEO of RCI Financial Services and RCI Bank in the UK.

Graham Davin, CEO of United Trust Bank, said: “Maria’s experience developing and launching Atom Bank’s mortgage business and designing market disrupting technology will be valuable to the board as we aim to significantly grow UTB’s mortgage business over the next few years.

“We are keen to utilise the latest technology to improve customer journeys and create efficiencies and Maria’s knowledge in that field is second to none. Her drive and experience will enhance the diverse range of skills and knowledge on UTB’s board.

“Alice is leaving to take up a new role as chief executive of RCI Bank, and as such, unfortunately needs to step down to avoid any conflict of interest with us. We thank Alice for her contribution and wish her every success in her new role.”

Harris added: “I’m honoured to be joining the board of such an entrepreneurial and highly respected bank. UTB have a strong history of providing customer focused solutions and innovating products to meet borrowers’ needs.

“Having recently launched facial recognition software and expressed a commitment to deploy technology for better customer experiences, I’m excited to bring my own digital expertise to the board.”