RBS’ general counsel (GC) for corporate & institutional banking (CIB) Dan Williams has left the legal team of the banking group.
Announced at the bank’s last Town Hall meeting by GC Michael Shaw, Williams’ departure comes after RBS kicked off a review of its 400-strong legal team in July last year as a way of controlling costs and drive efficiency.
It is understood there will not be a replacement for Williams, as RBS’ GC for the Americas James Esposito will take on a combined role, incorporating the CIB remit which Williams held.
Having worked as an in-house lawyer for financial institutions for more than 17 years, Williams joined the bank in April 2008 as GC for equities from ABN Amro after RBS took over ABN in 2007. He has held five different positions within RBS since, including GC for Asia Pacific and Markets UK/EMEA.
In his most recent position, he led a team of 90 lawyers in the UK, EMEA and Asia Pacific. At ABN AMRO he was co-global head of equity capital markets and M&A Advisory, having joined ABN in 2002. He started his career as a solicitor at Clifford Chance in 1996.
Earlier in 2016, the bank appointed former Barclays’ deputy group GC Shaw as its group GC after John Collins resigned only 11 months into the job to join Santander UK.
RBS has also seen a host of senior legal departures in the last few years, with deputy GC Rushad Abadan having joined insurer Standard Life as its GC at the start of 2016. The British banking giant also lost its EMEA head of financial crime, Carolina Garces-Monterrubio, to HSBC at the start of 2015.
georgiana.tudor@legalease.co.uk
