In Manchester, Barclays W&IM has hired Liam Townson from law firm Slaughter & May. As a private banker, he will support director James Bailey and fellow ex-lawyer Alison Probert. Also joining the Manchester office is Simon Davies from RBS as a wealth advisor. He brings over 20 years' experience in wealth management and will provide wealth advisory services across the North West region.

Meanwhile, Kenneth O’Donnell joins the Manchester team as a private banker from Barclays W&IM in Glasgow, while Annie Snowden, who has been with Barclays for eight years, has been appointed a specialist mortgage advisor for high net worth clients. She will also be based in Manchester.

In Liverpool, Amy Barlow has been hired as a private banker, having previously worked at Wealth at Work. Before this, she spent five years at Coutts, responsible for a portfolio of clients including individuals and trusts. Matt Latham also joins the Liverpool team as a private banker, returning to the bank after completing his MBA.

In Leeds, Louise Chesters has joined as a private banker. She was most recently senior investment manager at Dart Capital and formerly spent 12 years as an investment manager at Brewin Dolphin in Newcastle and then London.

Lastly, Mike Middleton has been appointed as a wealth advisor from Sanlam, bringing over 20 years’ industry experience. Based across Barclays’ Leeds and Newcastle offices, he will support clients across the whole North East region.

The flurry of hires follows recent reports that former JP Morgan investment banker Jes Staley will take the helm at Barclays, succeeding Antony Jenkins, who stepped down as chief executive in July after non-executive directors demanded faster changes and called for a “new set of skills”.