Penta Hires CEO From Banking-as-a-Service Provider

Germany-based digital small business bank Penta has announced its new chief executive officer.

According to a report on Monday (June 3), Penta is bringing Marko Wenthin onboard as its CEO. Wenthin is co-founder of solarisBank, the banking-as-a-service company that holds bank accounts for Penta customers.

The publication said Penta began its search for a new CEO following the company’s takeover by Finleap, which pressed the company to hire a new leader with more industry experience to scale up the firm. Wenthin, meanwhile, reportedly left solarisBank late last year, citing health reasons.

In a statement, Penta said that former CEO Lav Odorović “is still part of the shareholders at Penta.”

“His step back from the operational management team was a decision taken by mutual agreement,” the statement continued. “Lav was the right fit during the building phase of Penta, but by entering a new step of growth, the company faces bigger challenges and needs therefore to position itself differently.”

Wenthin will focus on international expansion for Penta, with Italy next in line for the bank’s entrance. The company will also begin to target the larger end of the SMB customer segment.

“I am very much looking forward to my new role at Penta,” Wenthin said in a statement. “On the one hand, digital banking for small and medium-sized companies is very important to me, as they are the driver of the economy and I have spent most of my career in this segment. On the other hand, I have known Penta and the team for a long time as successful partners of solarisBank.

“Penta is the best example of how a very focused banking provider can create real, digital, added value for an entire customer segment in cooperation with a banking-as-a-service platform,” he added.

Penta launched its small business financial services in 2017, with Odorović at the time pointing to high fees for SMBs and outdated technology offered by banks.