James Holian

Experience

James was appointed Chief Customer & Operations Officer for NatWest Group in September 2025. He is responsible for driving the bank’s customer agenda and leading a number of the bank-wide functions, including Financial Crime, Fraud, Property and Supply Chain.

James originally joined NatWest Group in 2009 to lead the restructuring of the Group’s investment banking business.  He has worked across multiple areas of the Group including commercial banking, investment banking, operations and technology. Prior to his current role, James was Managing Director for Business Banking and International Retail.  Before this, James led NWG’s Financial Crime and Controls teams through a period of significant change. 

James has over 20 years of financial services experience in the UK, U.S.A. and Asia.  Before NatWest, James worked at McKinsey and Company, and at Standard Chartered Bank

James graduated from Imperial College, London with a first class degree in chemical engineering, and has an MBA from Harvard Business School. He lives near London with his wife and two children.