Fintech growth specialist John Milliken has been appointed as CEO of research, ratings and fintech business Defaqto, joining the executive leadership team of parent company SimplyBiz.
Milliken joins from Cantab Research, where he served as CEO. Prior to this he worked as chief operating officer of payment software firm Infomedia.
Defaqto was acquired by SimplyBiz in March 2019, forming one of the UK's largest providers of financial services technology business support.
The Defaqto fintech platform is used by over 5,800 advisers from 1,900 intermediary firms, and immediately expanded SimplyBiz's customer base by 50 per cent.
In a statement issued by SimplyBiz, Neil Stevens, joint CEO of the group, said: "I am delighted to welcome John to the SimplyBiz Group.
"With his extensive track record, we are confident that he will make an excellent addition to our executive leadership team and a significant contribution towards the implementation of our digital strategy.
“Defaqto is a vibrant business with a very capable management team and a great roadmap of products.
"John's experience and leadership will be particularly valuable as we expand market reach and extend our value proposition to new and existing customers,” he added.
Zahid Bilgrami, the current Defaqto CEO, has been working on this planned transition for the previous six months and will help ensure a smooth handover to Milliken, who joins on March 1, 2021.
Bilgrami is expected to leave the business in April.
Stevens said: "On behalf of all of our teams, I would like to take this opportunity to thank Zahid for his fantastic contribution, especially during the seamless integration of Defaqto into the wider group. I wish him every future success."
Milliken added: "I am excited and energised to be joining the SimplyBiz Group at such a pivotal time for the business.
"I am looking forward to working with the exceptional team at Defaqto to continue to drive growth and deliver value to new and existing customers, as well as to explore ways in which we can expand our reach to new areas of the market."
Last week it was announced that David Thompson had been appointed as CFO of SimplyBiz.
Tom Higgins is a freelance writer for FTAdviser
