eBay executive joins board of UK online social lender

Kumaran Adithyan is general manager for global electronics and home at eBay, and has been with the marketplace since 2017. He formerly worked at Boots owner Walgreens Boots Alliance.

He joins social lender Fair for You in a non-executive role. The lender supports customers who aren’t able to access mainstream finance to help them buy essential items from a variety of retail partners such as Iceland, Argos, Dunelm and Eurionics.

It also operates Iceland Food Club, a zero-interest scheme that supports families during school holidays to help them avoid food poverty.

Adithyan joins Fair for You as it targets growth to meet an increasing need for ethical, affordable credit. It has recently launched a new shopping card loan so customers have better access to buy essential items.

On his role, Adithyan said: “Fair for You has supported nearly 100,000 customers through ethical credit, achieving significant social impact. I am delighted at the opportunity to support the organisation on the next steps in its journey. With recent stats showing that nearly two in three recipients of Universal Credit have no emergency savings, it is clear that ensuring access to affordable credit is an ethical and practical imperative for the UK.”

Fair for You chief executive Simon Dukes added: “Kumaran’s expertise and experience make him an invaluable addition to the board of Fair for You. We are delighted to welcome him to the team. Having unveiled a rebrand and an innovative new Shopping Card loan in recent months, 2025 is shaping up to be an exciting year for Fair for You, as we seek to support as many financially-excluded and low-income households as possible.”