RBS finance chief Bruce van Saun tipped to join Citizens

ROYAL BANK OF SCOTLAND is preparing to appoint its chief financial officer, Bruce van Saun, as head of its US subsidiary Citizens before the unit is floated, it has been widely reported.

The state-backed bank is thought to have lined up Nathan Bostock, the former finance director Abbey National, as Van Saun’s successor.

The appointment could be announced within a matter of weeks, though may not take effect until later in the year, said the Financial Times, which first reported the changes.

RBS declined to comment.

Bostock is head of risk and restructuring at RBS, a position he had held since joining from Abbey National in 2009. He had planned to join Lloyds Banking Group as head of wholesale banking in 2011, but abandoned the move.

People close to the situation told the FT, Bostock was promised a more senior role at RBS in the future, which included the prospect of replacing Van Saun.

Van Saun joined as RBS’ finance director in 2009, and has helped slim down the bank’s bloated balance sheet as part of a five-year turnaround plan devised by chief executive Stephen Hester.

In an interview with Financial Director last year, Van Saun explained that he took the RBS job following a telephone conversation with new CEO Stephen Hester which, he said, went something like: “How would you like to join me on the biggest turnaround on the planet?” Van Saun blithely adds the offer had “a certain attraction to it”.

The full interview can be read here.