Engine by Starling Hires Jody Bhagat to Lead Major North America Expansion

Engine by Starling, the banking Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) provider, today named industry veteran Jody Bhagat to lead its expansion into North America, where the company sees significant market opportunities amongst the region’s 4,000+ mid-tier banks and credit unions.

Jody will build an expert team, working alongside select partners, to deliver on Engine by Starling’s value proposition for North American financial institutions. He joins Engine from Personetics Technologies, the cognitive banking fintech, where he was President of Global Banking and helped build a market leading presence in North America. Before Personetics, he was a Partner at McKinsey & Company, where he executed digital transformation programs to drive customer growth. Previously, Jody held senior digital operating roles at U.S. Bank, Citizens Bank, and Wells Fargo.

Jody Bhagat, President North America, Engine by Starling, commented: “The North American market is highly competitive, and many banks and credit unions feel constrained by legacy technology. Digital-forward financial institutions are seeking a partner that can deliver technology transformation that drives real business results. Tried and tested in Europe and Australia, Engine by Starling has strong proof points demonstrating how the platform helps banks better acquire and serve customers.

I’m incredibly excited by the opportunity to bring Engine’s proven, cloud-based banking tech to North America. Progressive mid-tier banks and credit unions are seeking ways to operate more efficiently, to serve their customers digitally in a more intuitive way and to innovate more rapidly. Engine’s distinctive platform and capabilities will enable them to do just that.”

As part of a plan to invest upwards of US$50 million in its North American footprint, Engine by Starling will operate from a regional headquarters in New York, staffed by a mix of local hires and secondees from the firm’s UK-based team of product specialists. They will be complemented by a Canadian team based in Toronto.

Sam Everington, CEO, Engine by Starling, said: “Our ambition is clear: we want to become a significant partner to ambitious and customer-focused banks in the US and Canada, supporting them in replacing legacy technology constraints with revolutionary banking systems designed to enable rich, personalisable digital-first banking experiences for both customers and staff. To bring this vision to life, we need a top-class dedicated team for North America, and in Jody Bhagat we’re confident we’ve found the leader to make that happen.”

Earlier this month, Engine by Starling also opened regional offices in the Middle East and APAC, selecting Dubai in the UAE and Sydney in Australia. These will act as further bases for the business to grow and work with clients and partners internationally.

Engine by Starling was born of Starling Bank, a leading digital bank in the UK, to take Starling’s proprietary tech stack to financial institutions overseas. Its first customer, Salt Bank, became Romania’s first digital-native bank in 2024 and has since captured 4% of the country’s banking market. Earlier this year AMP in Australia launched a new digital bank, AMP Bank GO, targeting SMBs on Engine’s core banking platform. Both programs were delivered within 12 months.