Barclays New Chairman - Fundamental Shift in the Banking Culture

The Barclays Chairman (who is replacing Marcus Agius) has been announced as David Walker.

Given the 72 year old chairman's close connections with regulatory bodies and corporate governance reviews, the appointment gives strong indications about the future direction of the bank. During the Walker Review (2009), he called for the salary figures of staff being paid more than £1m, to be published and is a strong advocate of deferred compensation schemes. 

Given his previous track record, the bank's strategy is likely to become increasingly conservative and the aggressive expansion story, seen in the past is likely to be de-emphasised. This may be a welcome move as regulatory change may push investment banking to become a low return industry. 

The appointment was greeted with a 2% rise in the share price (seen below):