RBS appoints three non-executive directors

by Gill Montia

Story link: RBS appoints three non-executive directors

Royal Bank of Scotland has appointed three independent directors to its board.

Stephen Hester, the chief executive of British Land, John McFarlane, a former Standard Chartered and Citibank executive and Arthur Ryan, a former chairman of Prudential Financial, will take up their roles as non-executive directors from 1st October.

Mr Hester is currently deputy chairman of Northern Rock but will be leaving the job as he takes up the new post at RBS.

Analysts suggest that the appointment of Mr McFarlane and Mr Ryan should enhance the group’s non-executive experience of American and Asian markets.

The board shake-up is seen as a response to shareholders’ concerns over the group’s corporate governance, which have led to calls for chief executive, Sir Fred Goodwin, and chairman, Tom McKillop, to resign.

In the past year, both have come in for criticism over the price the group paid for Dutch bank, ABN Amro, and this summer, RBS complete the biggest rights issue in UK corporate history only weeks after Sir Fred denied that any fundraising was necessary.

Events have been rounded off by the group posting a £692 million loss in the first-half of 2008.