National Irish Bank and Northern Bank will operate under a single management structure under the direction of a new chief executive, Mr Don Price, as part of the restructuring undertaken by their owner, National Australia Group (NAG) Europe.

The outgoing chief executive, Mr Grahame Savage, who has been appointed managing director of NAG Europe, said the new model was designed to meet the challenge of the group's growth in Ireland, to provide focused customer service and to develop competitive products and services.

NIB stated that customer services in both the banks would have five divisions: business, premium, retail, rural and international.