Sir Malcolm Williamson steps down as chair of Clydesdale Bank

CLYDESDALE Bank yesterday announced that chairman Sir Malcolm Williamson is to retire in July and will be replaced by Cameron Clyne – chief executive of parent company National Australia Bank (NAB).

The group said Williamson’s retirement had been delayed during a strategic review, announced last month, which will see some 1,400 jobs lost by the end of 2015.

He is also chairman of National Australia Group Europe, which owns the Clydesdale and Yorkshire bank brands, and will retire from both positions on 26 July.

Last month, NAB announced that, on a “cash earnings” basis, its UK banking operations had fallen to a £25 million loss in the first half of the year, compared with a £77m profit in the previous year, reflecting a higher charge on bad debts and higher funding costs.

David Thorburn, chief executive of Clydesdale and Yorkshire banks, said: “For the past eight years, Sir Malcolm has successfully steered the UK board through a period of tremendous change. We understand why this is the right time for Sir Malcolm to retire .”

Clyne, who has been a member of the UK board for more than two years, will continue as chief executive of NAB when he replaces Williamson as chairman of National Australia Group Europe and Clydesdale.

The group also said three non-executive directors – Jonathan Dawson, Roy Nicolson and Elizabeth Padmore – will step down on 31 May.

They are being replaced on the board by four new non-executives, including David Allvey, the chairman of civil engineering firm Costain Group and senior non-executive director at Friends Provident.

He is joined by David Browne, Barbara Ridpath and Alex Shapland.