PwC names Mark Batten as banking and capital markets head

Mark Batten has been appointed as banking and capital markets leader for PwC in the UK. He will now oversee the firm’s practice which provides guidance on all aspects of strategy, risk and regulation, fintech consumer credit, tax and deals.

Regulatory reform, more stringent capital requirements, risk management considerations, disruptive technologies, a low interest rate environment, and enhanced reporting requirements were all challenges to growth in banking and capital markets – even before the disruption of the coronavirus pandemic. Sophisticated strategies and solutions will be required for financial institutions to navigate the pandemic and gain a competitive edge.

Amid this chaotic environment, PwC’s banking and capital markets practice works to assist many of the world's largest banks and securities firms with their most challenging issues in every segment of the financial industry. These include retail banking, commercial banking, wholesale banking, mortgage banking, securitisation, capital markets, insurance, investment management, and broker/dealer and real estate.

As PwC looks to bolster this service to clients in Europe’s financial hub of London, it has appointed Mark Batten as UK Banking & Capital Markets Leader. Having been a Partner with the firm since 1995, he brings extensive delivery experience to the role, from across major change projects in banking and capital markets including risk and regulatory strategy, risk transformation, finance transformation and efficiency and cost effectiveness.

Alongside this new challenge, Batten will retain his role as global relationship partner for one of PwC’s global banking clients. During his time with the Big Four firm, he has also worked in Australia, while being a qualified chartered accountant and member of the ICAEW.

Elsewhere in PwC’s financial services offering, the Government-owned British Business Bank recently tapped the firm to examine cases of possible fraud in its business loan programme, which was launched to help companies impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. The news saw PwC win further business from the bank, having previously been hired alongside Big Four competitors KPMG and Deloitte to speed up government-backed lending to struggling companies in the summer of 2020.