Sir Howard Davies, the veteran chair of NatWest, will leave the bank next year, with former Mastercard and Centrica executive Richard Haythornthwaite set to take charge in the wake of the saga surrounding Nigel Farage's accounts.

Davies's position had been closely watched after the chief executive of NatWest, Dame Alison Rose, and boss of its private bank Coutts, Peter Flavel, were both forced out after complaints that the bank discriminated against the former UKIP leader based on his political views by 'de-banking' him.