Business lender appoints CFO

Prospa has appointed Ross Aucutt as its new chief financial officer (CFO), who will replace interim CFO Peter Loosmore.

Mr Aucutt, who will begin his new role on 7 October, joins Prospa from financial services group FlexiGroup Ltd, where he was CFO for almost four years. In that role, he was responsible for driving growth while increasing the efficiency of the business and its balance sheet, with the management of financial planning and analysis, capital management and treasury, as well as mergers and acquisitions.

Before this, Mr Aucutt was group treasurer at Latitude Financial Services, where he built a treasury function and was responsible for all funding, cash management, capital reporting and operations.

He also has a background in non-bank disruptive financial models and the financial markets where he has worked at a senior level in large domestic and international organisations, including the Royal Bank of Scotland/NatWest Group (London), Westpac (Sydney) and Barclays (London).

The appointment comes after the lender’s former CFO, Edoardo Bigazzi, stepped down from his role in March.

Prospa had made Peter Loosmore its interim CFO earlier this year as it searched for a permanent replacement. 

Commenting on Mr Aucutt’s appointment, Prospa CEO Greg Moshal said: “I’m thrilled with the appointment of Ross as our CFO.

“His financial and public market experience will prove invaluable to us as we look to ensure we are well positioned for the future.

“Ross has deep industry experience of listed lending businesses and a track record of delivering strong results. His passion for fintech and his skills and experience will add considerable value to the Prospa team.”

Speaking of his appointment, Mr Aucutt said: “With small businesses needing support now more than ever, Prospa’s funding and cash flow solutions will help these businesses as they focus on their recovery.”

“I can’t wait to join Greg and the team.”

Mr Loosmore will be staying on for a short period to ensure a smooth transition.

The lender thanked Mr Loosmore for his contribution to the company, in particular in relation to the 2020 financial year results announcement in August.

[Related: Prospa reports improved demand from SMEs]

Malavika Santhebennur is the features editor on the mortgages titles at Momentum Media.

Before joining the team in 2019, Malavika held roles with Money Management and Benchmark Media. She has been writing about financial services for the past six years.