YBS
Defining a clear purpose in the world In every organisation ’ s history , there are usually a few executives that have a defining impact . For YBS , one of the most influential was Mike Regnier , the erstwhile chief executive who left to become CEO of Santander UK at the beginning of 2022 .
David Morris says : “ What Mike did was come in and effectively provide quite a lot of strategic clarity in terms of what we can and can ' t be . We need to be a savings and mortgage business and we need to get simple , lean , and focused . That ' s really been the mantra over the last eight years . What we ' ve seen since about 2018 is an acceleration of that vision .”
Yorkshire Building Society focuses on mortgages , savings products and commercial lending , shying away from everyday transactional banking ( which is highly regulated with a lot of competition ) in favour of higher-interest products that encourage consumers to put some of their money aside . That means YBS has three core lines of business , which Morris describes as “ low-touch but meaningful ”. The company is one of the largest lenders in the UK : “ We ’ re very big but we ’ re focused ,” he explains .
“ I FIND MYSELF ENGAGED BY PEOPLE WHO ARE ABLE TO BREAK PARADIGMS , THINK DIFFERENTLY AND LIFT THEMSELVES OUT OF THE STATUS QUO ”
DAVID MORRIS BA , MA CHIEF COMMERCIAL OFFICER , YBS
The sheer scale that YBS has been able to achieve is testament to the laser-tight focus within the business . “ We want to make sure we ' re doing things purposefully ; we want to make sure we ' ve got the capability to execute against that ; and critically we only compete in parts of the market where we think we can win ,” Morris continues .
On mortgages , this means a higher proportion of its lending goes to firsttime buyers or customers who are often overlooked by other providers . This allows them to occupy the underserved space in between other mainstream lenders , carving out a competitive advantage for themselves . “ They ’ re good people but for whatever reason other banks are not providing solutions that help them get on the housing ladder ,” Morris says . YBS still lends to more affluent customers who have higher equity in their homes , but they are clear that the