I met Richard only once, just a few months ago. He was wildly articulate and passionate about first Egg and then Zopa, his most recent creation. He spoke about the focus group sessions where the name “Egg” had been tested and where, consistently, it came out top with potential future customers, despite no one inside Prudential believing in it. I’d played around with Zopa, fascinated by the model and the managed exposure it seemed to offer lenders. His thinking was inspirational.
Today I learned that cancer, the scourge of perhaps 1 in 3 of us, has taken him at the incredibly young age of 44. Cancer is a cruel, hardened, street fighter. The news stories say Richard’s battle was brief and I hope, therefore, relatively painless.
I have lost family and friends to the dreaded cancer, it’s never easy. My thoughts are with his family and all those who knew him.