German challenger bank N26 has appointed a general manager to boost its plans for further expansion in the UK, ramping up the competition with the likes of Starling and Monzo.

Will Sorby has been appointed UK general manager with a brief to lead the next stage of N26’s expansion following the launch of its mobile banking app in the UK in November last year. The company claims to have seen more than 1,000 new customers register on a daily basis since the roll out began.

Sorby joins N26 from a consumer product management role at consultancy firm Bain & Company and seven years at Morgan Stanley, where he was vice president within the group’s investment banking division.

The FinTech said Sorby would drive forward its plans for further customer acquisition in the UK to build on its 2.5 million-strong customer base across Europe.

He will also help to build the product offering within its app-based banking model, with plans for joint accounts and overdraft facilities part of the challenger its longer-term strategy to rival incumbents’ more traditional banking services.

Sorby said he would aim to tackle the fact that despite the fact that the UK is the most advanced market for banking products, consumers remain four times more likely to be aware of mobile-first banks than to actually use them.

Valentin Stalf, chief executive of N26, said: “Will’s appointment is a clear demonstration of our commitment to the UK market, and the key role it will play towards our goal of building a bank the world loves to use.”

In an interview to mark the bank’s UK launch, N26’s head of international markets Alexander Weber told FSTech the FinTech had its sights on expansion further afield, with a US launched planned this year.

In January N26 became the highest valued FinTech in Europe following a $300 million funding round that valued the company at $2.7 billion.

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