Sallie Mae, the saving, planning, and paying for college company, formally SLM Corporation, has announced that its chief executive, Raymond Quinlan, is stepping down next month, to be replaced by Jonathan Witter (pictured), currently chief customer of Hilton Worldwide Holdings.

Quinlan will continue to work with Witter and the company as chairman of the board until Sallie Mae’s annual general meeting on 18 June, when a new chairman will be appointed.

Witter is an industry veteran with nearly three decades of executive leadership, banking expertise, and operational management. At Hilton, Witter oversaw the company’s global brands, marketing, loyalty and partnerships, IT, and strategy teams. He was previously Capital One’s president of retail and direct banking for seven years. Before that he was chief operating officer of Morgan Stanley’s retail banking group, and was executive vice-president and head of general bank distribution at Wachovia.

Paul Child, lead independent director at Sallie Mae, said: “This announcement is the culmination of a thoughtful succession planning process to ensure that Sallie Mae is best positioned to continue delivering sustainable long-term value creation. The board carefully evaluated a number of highly qualified individuals and concluded that Jon is the best candidate to be the next CEO of Sallie Mae. Jon is an experienced financial services executive with a strong track record of operational excellence and customer engagement. We look forward to an exciting new chapter for Sallie Mae under Jon’s leadership.”

Witter said, “I’m excited to assume the role as Sallie Mae’s next CEO. Sallie Mae has a rich history of helping students build prosperous futures and, as their needs grow and change, we will be there to support them. I look forward to working closely with the board, management team, and talented employees to leverage the company’s momentum and competitive position to realise the value inherent in Sallie Mae.”

Sallie Mae, is headquartered in Newark, Delaware.