ClearScore appoints Brian Cole as Group Chief Financial Officer

By Gloria Methri

The ClearScore Group, a global financial services marketplaces group, has appointed Brian Cole as Group CFO, effective immediately. A financial services executive, Cole has held senior leadership roles at Capital One, Barclays, and Visa.

Now in its ninth year and with 20 million users around the world, The ClearScore Group has expanded to include several data-driven online marketplaces, retailing financial services products, and serving people across four continents.

Cole’s appointment bolsters the strong senior management team and his depth of experience in lending will set The ClearScore Group up for continued diversification and growth on an international scale.

Justin Basini, Group CEO, and Co-founder said, “I am thrilled that Brian has decided to join us at this exciting time in our journey to becoming a globally recognised, diversified, online marketplace business helping people improve their financial well-being. He has a strong track record in international leadership, delivering robust financial results in scaled and scaling businesses where driving growth and operational leverage are critical. We welcome him to the team.”

Cole said, “I am very excited to be joining The ClearScore Group at a time when it has expanded globally as well as diversified into open banking services and adjacent verticals. I look forward to working with Justin and the team in delivering ClearScore’s mission of making personal finance clearer, calmer, and easier to understand at scale around the world.”

While CFO of Capital One, Cole steered the business successfully through the Great Recession and as CEO brought it back to growth in the years thereafter. Later, he served as CEO of Barclaycard Consumer.

At Barclays, Cole ran the credit card unit within Barclays Group, leading the organisation through a period of intensifying competition and consumer regulation. At Visa, he was Head of Product for its North American region, where he was responsible for core consumer payment products and spearheaded various key strategic initiatives in Visa’s home and largest market.