John Whelan, former chief executive of the Irish Exporters Association (IEA), is to join AIB as the bank's export sector specialist.

Explaining the move Ken Burke, head of business banking at AIB, said that the appointment demonstrates the bank's "serious intent to best understand the needs of our exporting customers, support the financial requirements of this fast growing and important sector of the Irish economy, and provide innovative solutions".

In a nice symmetry, Simon McKeever, a former banker with AIB Capital Markets, assumed Mr Whelan’s role at the IEA in November last year.