US-based digital bank Simple has hired David Hijirida from e-commerce giant Amazon as its new CEO, The Financial Times has reported.
The company confirmed the new appointment to its staff last week.
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Hijirida will assume the new responsibility from interim chief executive Dickson Chu, who was managing the role after Simple’s founding CEO Josh Reich left the company in May.
Brief profile of David Hijirida
Hijirida, a chartered financial analyst, was associated with Amazon since 2007.
He worked with Washington Mutual, which has now a part of JPMorgan Chase, from 2003 to 2007.
Prior to that, he worked with FleetBoston, which later merged with Bank of America.
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By GlobalDataThe Financial Times quoted Hijirida as saying: “Banking was my first love, especially on the retail consumer side. The reason why I left was really out of frustration with traditional banks and finding it very difficult to change those institutions from the inside.
“And so I left thinking that I’d like to have a white board and try my own ideas . . . I’ve always thought about coming back, especially with the rise of fintech and all this disruption.”
In 2014, Simple was acquired by Spanish company BBVA for around $117m.
With a staff of nearly 350 people, it provides savings and a checking account services. Hijirida is planning to make Simple a ‘full service’ bank but did not reveal further details.
