RBS Wealth Chief Tapner To Leave Queen's Bank

The chief executive of Royal Bank of Scotland (LSE: RBS.L - news) 's (RBS's) wealth arm is to step down in the latest of a string of management changes at the taxpayer-backed lender.

Sky News has learned that Rory Tapner, one of the City's most senior bankers, is to leave Coutts, which counts Her Majesty The Queen among its clients, in the coming months.

His departure is expected to be announced alongside the bank's annual results on Thursday, according to insiders.

Mr Tapner was recruited in 2010 to run RBS's global wealth management business, which was a core element of its strategy under the then chief executive, Stephen Hester, and his predecessor, Fred Goodwin.

However, under Ross McEwan, the bank's current boss, RBS has embarked on a retrenchment from many of its overseas operations, further evidence of which will emerge this week.

In recent months, RBS has been exploring a sale of Coutts' international arm, which analysts believe could command a price tag of up to £600m.

Last year, the UK operations of Coutts were moved within the commercial and private banking division of RBS, which is run by Alison Rose.

In addition to Coutts, RBS's private banking brands include Adam & Co and Drummond's.

The structural changes to its wealth business had diminished the scale of Mr Tapner's role, insiders said.

A former executive at Rowe & Pitman and then SG Warburg - two of the City's most prominent names during the 1980s and 1990s - he went on to hold senior roles at UBS (LSE: 0QNR.L - news) , the Swiss banking giant.

The Coutts sale will not include a licence to use the famous wealth management brand, which will remain attached to Coutts' UK operations.

RBS is retaining the domestic franchise, which is among the world’s oldest private banks, with a heritage dating back to the late 17th century.

The Singaporean bank DBS (SES: D05.SI - news) and French lender Societe Generale (Paris: FR0000130809 - news) have teamed up to bid for the business and carve it up along geographical lines.

Other bidders are said to include Union Bancaire Privee and Credit Suisse (LSE: 0QP5.L - news) , although sources played down suggestions that the re-emergence of the Swiss tax evasion scandal at HSBC was proving a major obstacle to the sale process.

RBS is likely to confirm the appointment of Sir Howard Davies, who is spearheading the Government's review of aviation capacity, as its new chairman on Thursday, replacing Sir Philip Hampton.

Mr McEwan is expected to point to continued progress in reorienting RBS towards its domestic operations.

A previously anticipated full-year profit will effectively be wiped out by a multibillion pound goodwill writedown on the value of its remaining shareholding in Citizens (NYSE: CIA - news) , the US bank it floated last year.

RBS declined to comment.