Murray, whose appointment is pending regulatory approval, will become the first woman to hold the finance chief role at RBS.

RBS declined to comment.

Murray will take the number two job at a time when RBS is in its healthiest condition since the 2008 financial crisis, following a decade-long restructuring that saw it shrink from a failed international expansion to focus on Britain.

That refocusing on its home market however leaves RBS more exposed than rivals such as Barclays and HSBC to the risks of a potential sharp economic slowdown when Britain leaves the European Union in March.

Murray's appointment to the interim CFO role followed the departure of Ewen Stevenson, who left in June to take up the same role at HSBC

Another female executive, Alison Rose, is widely tipped to take over the chief executive role at the bank after receiving a promotion last month to the role of deputy CEO of its main retail banking unit.