John Owen has been appointed sole CEO of international banking at RBS, following the departure of Scott Barton, his former co-CEO, in August.

Owen, who has been with RBS since 2011, continues to report to John Houricane.

RBS’s international banking business includes the client coverage teams, the international network, lending and transaction services products as well as the provision of markets products, such as FX. Owen also has responsibility within international banking for debt capital markets and for financial institutions coverage.

In early 2012 the bank restructured its global transaction services (GTS) division, merging GTS with the global banking & markets (GBM) division to create a new wholesale banking arm called markets & international banking.

“One of the big things that the bank wanted to signal when it put the two businesses together was that it wasn’t a takeover by one of the other – and that people should feel this is genuinely two businesses that ought to be together,” says Owen.

He adds that the change in management will have no effect on the bank’s strategy.

“Strategically, there is no difference whatsoever. The transaction services business is absolutely front and centre of everything we need to do.”

No other changes to the management team have been made.

According to RBS, Scott Barton will be pursuing an opportunity outside of the bank.