21st Dec 2005 09:01
Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC21 December 2005 The Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc Sir Tom McKillop to succeed Sir George Mathewson as Group Chairman Board Appointments The Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc announces today the following appointmentsand Board changes: Group Chairman Sir George Mathewson will retire from the Board at the Group's Annual GeneralMeeting on 28 April 2006. He will be succeeded as Chairman by Sir Tom McKillop.Sir Tom is currently Chief Executive of AstraZeneca PLC, from which he willretire on 31 December 2005, a Non-Executive Director of BP plc and DeputyChairman at The Royal Bank of Scotland Group. Upon his retiral from the BoardSir George will become an adviser to the Group. Group Finance Director Guy Whittaker will succeed Fred Watt as Group Finance Director on 1 February2006. Guy Whittaker is currently Group Treasurer, Citigroup having previouslyheld various finance posts at Citigroup and its predecessor. In June 2005, FredWatt announced his intention to leave the Group, once a successor had beenfound. Non-Executive Director Eileen Mackay, a Non-Executive Director of the Group, will retire from the Boardon 31 December 2005. Commenting on the Board changes, Sir George Mathewson Chairman of RBS said: "Iand the Board are delighted that Sir Tom has agreed to become my successor. AsChief Executive of a global company he has wide experience of operatingsuccessfully in different international markets. He also has a comprehensiveunderstanding of financial services from his previous directorship of a majorbank. "The Board is also pleased to have secured the services of Guy Whittaker, anexperienced senior executive of the highest calibre. His breadth ofinternational experience in financial services will be invaluable to the Board. "I would also like to pay tribute to Eileen Mackay for her loyal service to boththe Board and RBS over the last nine years. During her time as a Board member wehave all benefited from her wise counsel, sharp mind and considerableexperience. I would like, on behalf of the Board, to extend our thanks to Eileenand wish her well for the future." Commenting on the announcement of Sir George Mathewson's retiral as GroupChairman, Sir Fred Goodwin, Group Chief Executive said: "Under George'sleadership, initially as Group Chief Executive and more recently as Chairman,RBS has enjoyed an unparalleled period of growth and success both at home andinternationally. His decision to stand down at the next AGM marks the end of anera but leaves a remarkable legacy and I would like to thank him, bothpersonally and on behalf of his colleagues for 18 years of outstandingcontribution. While we will miss George as a colleague many of us will retainhim as a good friend, knowing that we will always be able to call on hissupport." 21 December 2005 Contact Details:- Howard Moody Group Director, Communications 0131 523 2056 Richard O'Connor Head of Investor Relations 0207 672 1758 Note to Editors Sir George Mathewson Sir George Mathewson (65) was educated at St Andrews University (BSc, PhD) andhas a wide background in finance, technology and management. He joined The RoyalBank of Scotland Group in 1987 as Director of Strategic Planning and Developmentand in 1990 was appointed Deputy Group Chief Executive. In January 1992 he wasappointed Group Chief Executive and, following the acquisition of NatWest, SirGeorge was appointed Executive Deputy Chairman in March 2000. In April 2001 SirGeorge was appointed Chairman of the Group. He is a Director of the Scottish Investment Trust plc. In November 2001 SirGeorge was appointed to the Board of Directors of the Institute of InternationalFinance, Inc. and in June 2005 he became President of the International MonetaryConference. Sir George joined the Advisory Committee of Bridgepoint CapitalLimited in January 2004 and in November 2004 he was appointed a member of theFinancial Reporting Council. From 1981-87 Sir George was Chief Executive of theScottish Development Agency being widely recognised for his achievements ineconomic development. From 1972-81 he was with ICFC (now 3i), the leading UKdevelopment capital organisation. Prior to 1972, and after a period in academiclife, he spent 5 years in the United States as a professional engineer with BellAerospace during which time he graduated MBA. Sir George became Group Chief Executive in September 1992. In that year theGroup's reported income was £1,375 million with 24,000 being employed. In 2004income had increased to £22,754 million and employment had grown to 137,000 withalmost 40,000 being employed internationally. Sir Tom McKillop Sir Tom McKillop (62) is currently the Chief Executive of AstraZeneca. Prior tothe merger, Sir Tom held the position of Chief Executive Officer Designate ofthe Zeneca Group since 1998, having previously served as Executive Director ofthe Zeneca Group and Chief Executive Officer of Zeneca Pharmaceuticals. Sir Tom joined ICI's Corporate Research Laboratory in 1969, followingpost-doctorate research work after obtaining a PhD and BSc Hons in Chemistry. Helater moved to ICI Pharmaceuticals Division where he held a number of positionsover the next 14 years, including Technical Director with internationalresponsibility for research, development and production. Sir Tom's external activities include his Non-Executive Director appointmentwith Lloyds TSB Group PLC from 1999 to 2004. He is also Pro-Chancellor ofLeicester University. Sir Tom is married with three children and his leisureinterests include sport, reading, carpentry and music. Guy Whittaker Guy Whittaker (49) is currently the Treasurer of Citigroup, responsible formanaging the balance sheet of the company, including its capital resources,funding strategy, capital markets issuance, aggregate interest rate risk andliquidity. He is a member of the Finance and Capital, Global Asset andLiability, and Citigroup Management Committees. Prior to his appointment in July 2000, Guy spent four years as Global Head ofForeign Exchange Sales and Trading for Citigroup. He joined the company in 1980as a foreign exchange trader in the London Treasury. During his career has helda number of management positions within the financial markets business includingUK Treasurer, Regional Treasurer for Europe, and Head of European ForeignExchange. Guy graduated from Cambridge University with honours in 1977 and wasawarded an MBA in 1980 from the University of West Georgia. He was elected aLady Beaufort Fellow of Christ's College Cambridge in 2004. Eileen Mackay Eileen Mackay (62) was appointed to the Group Board in May 1996. Eileen is aformer civil servant who held posts in Scotland, HM Treasury and the CabinetOffice and was principal finance officer at the Scottish Office. She is adirector of Edinburgh Investment Trust, Scottish Financial Enterprise and TheBritish Library. Current list of Group Board Directors as at 20 December 2005 Sir George Mathewson - Chairman Sir Tom McKillop - Deputy Chairman Sir Fred Goodwin - Group Chief Executive Mr Colin Buchan - Non-executive Director Dr Jim Currie - Non-executive Director Mr Larry Fish - Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer CitizensFinancial Group, Inc. Mr Archie Hunter - Non-executive Director Mr Charles 'Bud' Koch - Non-executive Director Mr Joe MacHale - Non-executive Director Miss Eileen Mackay - Non-executive Director Mr Gordon Pell - Executive Chairman, Retail Markets Sir Steve Robson - Non-executive Director Mr Bob Scott - Non-executive Director Mr Peter Sutherland - Non-executive Director Mr Fred Watt - Group Finance Director Future Appointments Ms Janis Kong - Non-executive Director with effect from 1st January 2006 This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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