City grandee to lead Ebury before float

A City veteran has been hired to lead the board of Ebury as the Santander-backed payments business steps up preparations for a possible stock market flotation.
Bruce Carnegie-Brown has been appointed chairman of the London-based financial technology company, which specialises in handling cross-border payments for small firms and could be valued at up to £2 billion by a listing.
Carnegie-Brown, 64, is a well-known figure in the Square Mile, having chaired the Lloyd’s of London insurance market since 2017, although he is due to step down next year.
He started his career as an investment banker and spent 18 years at JP Morgan before running the UK and European business of Marsh, the insurance broker, and taking a top job at 3i, the investment group. His long roster of roles has also included chairing Moneysupermarket Group, now called MONY Group, between 2014 and 2019.
His appointment to Ebury is a further sign that the firm is readying itself for an initial public offering.
Ebury was founded in 2009 by Juan Lobato, its chief executive and a former McKinsey consultant, and Salvador Garcia, a former trader. It is 54 per cent owned by Santander, the Spanish banking giant that has a big high street presence in Britain, but is run independently. Investment bankers from Goldman Sachs and Bank of America are said to be advising Ebury on a listing, which is predicted for next year.
If the company goes public in London, it will provide a boost for Britain’s faltering flotations market, which has suffered from a relative dearth of IPOs since late 2021.
The payments group has more than 1,600 employees spread over offices in 29 countries and provides services to more than 17,000 businesses, mainly small and medium-sized firms.
Carnegie-Brown said: “I am excited to contribute to Ebury’s next chapter.”