The suggestion that Mr Peter White would become chief executive following the merger of Bank of Ireland and Alliance & Leicester (A & L) has puzzled analysts since the proposed link-up was announced.

Analysts described Mr White's record as reasonable but noted that he had far less retail banking experience than his Bank of Ireland counterpart, Mr Maurice Keane. His challenge, one said, was to transform himself from a "building society man" into the head of a diversified financial grouping.

A chartered accountant by training, Mr White began his career at Price Waterhouse but soon moved into the financial sector. He worked for the Abbey National Building Society for 12 years, rising from management accountant to financial controller and treasurer.

In 1982, he joined Alliance & Leicester as general manager in charge of finance, treasury and management services, becoming chief executive in 1991. In the late 1980s, A & L suffered, like many British financial institutions, from provisions made on home loan lending. But since then, it has grown substantially, becoming a plc in 1997 and recording profits of more than £450 million sterling (€686 million) last year. Its biggest acquisition during Mr White's tenure was Girobank, now A & L's largest subsidiary and a fully-authorised bank.

Mr White's talents are seen primarily as cost-cutting and control and he is credited with reducing A & L's reliance on the mortgage market, building it into an efficient and competitive financial institution.

He was expected to take a strong stance on savings and synergies had the merger with Bank of Ireland gone ahead, although analysts were cautious on whether the predicted cost savings of £200 million were achievable.

Married with one son and one daughter, Mr White is both an opera buff and a sports fan. He is also one of the Britain's highest paid executives, earning an annual package of £681,000 in 1997. He netted £1.3 million from the flotation of A & L, including share options.