Mark Humphries joins Plenitude as non-executive chair

Professional services firm Plenitude has installed financial services expert Mark Humphries as its new non-executive chair. He brings three decades of experience to the financial crime, risk and compliance specialist.

Managing Director Alan Paterson commented, “This is a pivotal moment for Plenitude and a key appointment. Mark has an impressive track record working with other high growth private equity-backed businesses and the timing could not be better given we have just completed our busiest year to date, and have our sights set on more growth this year.”

“We’re determined to achieve our ambition to be the leading consultancy in financial crime compliance advisory, transformation and innovative RegTech subscription products, and Mark is well positioned to help us step up the pace.”

Founded in 2012, Plenitude focuses on addressing the legal, regulatory, reputational and social imperative risks for financial institutions, helping clients take diligent and rigorous steps to mitigate financial crime dangers.

The firm works with a wide array of financial institutions including retail, commercial and investment banks, insurance companies and asset management firms across UK, Germany, France, Nordics and the EU – having provided advisory services on some of the largest and most complex financial crime compliance transformations in the industry, across multiple jurisdictions.

Humphries joins Plenitude at a key moment in its history. Following a strategic investment by Growth Capital Partners in 2022, he will now provide invaluable strategic insights to the board, to allow Plenitude to strengthen its capabilities while also guiding the firm in executing its business strategy. 

Richard Shaw, a partner at Growth Capital Partners, said, “Plenitude is a fantastic growth business and following our investment last year, we are delighted and privileged to be working in partnership with Alan, Asad and their team and supporting them across a wide range of strategic initiatives.”

“Mark’s appointment is a prime example of this, and we look forward to welcoming him to the board and to working with him to help further shape the strategy of the group to support its continuing exciting growth plans.”

A respected leader in the financial sector, Humphries is a Chartered Accountant by background, having commenced his career at PwC in the early 1990s, before co-founding focused Catalyst Corporate Finance. After he helped the firm grow to become one of the UK’s largest mid-market corporate finance firms, he went on to hold a string of senior roles in the professional services sector.

In recent years, he served as a senior advisor and non-executive board member at consultancies Baringa and Temple Grange Partners. This included a year as the chair of financial services firm Sionic, and a stint as chair of digital-led consultancy Vendigital, which ended in 2022. He also still holds a number of non-executive roles at private equity backed firms, including Quorom Cyber and Veramed.

On his latest challenge, Humphries remarked, “The regulatory requirements on financial institutions across global markets to prevent and detect criminal activities are increasingly demanding and complex. I’ve been extremely impressed with Plenitude’s proposition built on strong financial crime domain expertise and transformation capabilities, enviable client base and track record of first-class delivery, plus great strength in depth across the senior leadership team and the firm. I’m really looking forward to joining the Plenitude board and supporting the continued success.”

Last week, Plenitude was named one of the UK’s leading consulting firms for risk & compliance services.