‘I accidentally locked one of the world’s richest men in a car park’: Symmie Swil on her career at Starling and Upvest
Building SME Banking at Starling, meetings with pandas, and accidentally locking one of the richest men in the world in a car park. Each week, we dig into the memory bank of the City’s great and good. Today, Symmie Swil, UK general manager at Upvest, takes us through her career in Square Mile and Me
CV
- Name: Symmie Swil
- Job title: General manager, UK, at Upvest
- Previous roles: Head of SME banking at Starling Bank, Deputy COO at Investec Corporate & Investment Bank
- Age: 40
- Born: Johannesburg
- Lives: London
- Studied: University of Sydney
- Talents: Still in search, but persistent in the meantime
- Motto: Either “What can we learn from this?” or “I’m so lucky I get to …”
- Biggest perk of the job? The people I work with and building something new and meaningful for millions of people
- Coffee order: Oat flat white
- Cocktail order: Gin & tonic or negroni
- Favourite book: Predictably Irrational by Dan Ariely – I love business psychology, and it’s a brilliant reminder of how much behaviour (and misbehaviour) drives decision-making.
What was your first job?
Working in a sandwich shop in the local shopping centre from age 14. At uni, I juggled lots of odd jobs – PA at an accounting firm, private tutor, census collector, election scrutineer… you name it!
What was your first role in the City?
At university, I worked in customer support at an independent equity research firm – but quickly found myself editing (and then writing) their stock tips newsletter: “Mine for dividends with these top 5 gold stocks”, that sort of thing. I loved analysing data and crafting an engaging story about it – great training for my first “City” job as an M&A analyst at ABN AMRO. I started that role the same day Lehman Brothers collapsed – 15 Sept 2008. I learnt a lot, fast, during the financial crisis.
When did you know you wanted to build a career in the City?
My dad worked in financial services and absolutely loved his job and shared his passion with me. He had me thinking about which stocks to buy at 12 and reading The Economist alongside Harry Potter. Unsurprisingly, I then studied finance and law at uni, started in M&A and spent eight years in investment banking.
Working in a big bank, I saw the opportunity tech offers to make financial services more inclusive and I wanted to be a part of that – so I moved into strategy and transformation at Investec, followed by building SME Banking at Starling. Now I’m heading the UK team at Upvest, helping banks and fintechs reimagine digital investing – and absolutely loving it. There is still so much opportunity to democratise investing and Upvest is leading the way in this space.
What’s one thing you love about Canada?
I absolutely love how the city combines energy and innovation with centuries of tradition. I try to remember to look up regularly. There’s always a blue plaque or monument to make me pause and think, “Wow, I’m lucky to work here.”
And one thing you would change?
More sunshine or, failing that, more awnings to walk under when it inevitably rains.
What’s been your most memorable business lunch or meeting?
We were pitching for a sell-side mandate in Adelaide, home to the only pandas in Australia at the time. I convinced the team to squeeze in a visit to the zoo after our pitch (we did our afternoon calls from there – cue confused colleagues asking about the background screeching). We agreed to keep it secret… until we ran into our rivals at the airport and our MD casually dropped: “We even went to the zoo this afternoon.” Luckily, we still won.
And any business faux pas?
During my first week in an internship, I accidentally locked one of the world’s richest men in a car park. I was helping to facilitate hush-hush negotiations on a multi-billion dollar M&A deal across different hotels in the city, and was asked to escort the chairman back to his car. Unfortunately no one realised I didn’t have the right security access, nor a Blackberry(!) to contact the team. It was a Sunday and no-one was around to let us out, so we were stuck for what felt like hours, but was probably only 20 minutes. He was very nice about it and always made a point of saying hello at future results briefings.
What’s been your proudest moment?
I’m proudest when I’ve helped a team deliver something hard, against the odds, and delighted a client in the process. I love the mix of solving problems, building something new and being part of something bigger. I’m also proud of building a life here in London and learning to adapt quickly to new industries and markets.
And who do you look up to?
A bit cliched, but my mum and dad are both amazing and different role models. I’ll spare their blushes, but I’m also lucky enough to have worked with some brilliant leaders who combine vision, empathy and action. I love stories of entrepreneurs who challenge the status quo, but the people I admire most are those I’ve seen up close, doing the hard stuff well.
What’s the best business advice you’ve ever been given?
People may not remember what you said, or even what you did, but they will always remember how you made them feel. It’s a great reminder to lead with empathy, even in high-stakes environments.
And the worse?
Probably the advice I didn’t get – like how important your network is. I spent too long in banking assuming hard work was enough. I wish I’d been told earlier how important it was to invest in building relationships in a way that was authentic to you (it doesn’t have to be rugby or drinks!).
Are you optimistic for the year ahead?
Definitely. I started out in banking during the financial crisis, which taught me there’s always opportunity, especially when things feel uncertain. Right now, there’s a real wave of change: consumer expectations, regulation and market forces are all pushing banks, brokers and fintechs to level up how they deliver investing. It’s not just about access anymore, it’s about building smarter, more engaging experiences. At Upvest, we’re powering that transformation and I’m really excited about all the opportunities to encourage consumers to take a more proactive approach to their financial futures.
We’re going for lunch, and you’re picking – where are we going?
Lina Stores or Delamina.
And if we’re grabbing a drink after work?
The Lighterman, Kings Cross – overlooking the canal for sunset.
Where’s home during the week?
Kings Cross.
And where might we find you at the weekend?
Walking along the Regents Canal and debating whether to go to the gym
You’ve got a well-deserved two weeks off. Where are you going and who with?
Exploring somewhere new with my husband (I’ve been to 70+ countries and always keen to explore more), to a beach, or back to Sydney to see my mum.