The ethical Charity Bank, based in Tonbridge, has appointed a new chief executive.

Edward Siegel will replace Patrick Crawford who is retiring after almost six years in the role.

He will take up the post at the end of July.

The Charity Bank is a savings and loans bank with a "mission to use money for good". It uses the money savers put into it to make loans to charities, social enterprises and organisations with charitable purposes.

Mr Siegel joins from Big Issue Invest (BII), the social investment arm of The Big Issue Group, where he has been managing director since 2008.

During that time BBI has grown from a book of social enterprise loans of around £2 million to a diverse array of social funds under management of more than £65m.

He will be base at the bank's Fosse House base in Tonbridge High Street.

Last month, Charity Bank announced it had lent over £15.2m to the social sector in the first three months of 2018; more than any previous quarter in its history.

This follows three consecutive years of record lending to charities and social enterprises, with drawn loans growing from £52m at the start of 2015 to over £120m today.

George Blunden, Charity Bank’s chairman, said: “Under Patrick’s leadership we have provided loans and support to hundreds of charities and social enterprises, touching the lives of more than one million people from across the UK. As we move towards sustained profit, we are taking steps to extend our support and impact further.

“We believe Ed is the right person to lead Charity Bank as we enter this new phase and take action to address how we can best meet the future expectations and needs of the social sector."

Edward Siegel said: “Its mission to use money for good was a key factor in my decision to pursue this opportunity. The bank’s community of borrowers, savers, investors and its team are all working towards one goal – to help strengthen charities and social enterprises so that they can create lasting social change.

“It is a privilege to remain within the social finance sector, supporting those organisations who work tirelessly to make the world a better place.”

Before joining BII, he spent the early part of his career in commercial banking - mainly with Credit Suisse.