BANK of Ireland's deputy chief executive, Mr Maurice Keane, has been appointed as group chief executive designate, to take over from Mr Pat Molloy when he retires next year.

Mr Keane (56), will become chief executive in January next year, the bank announced yesterday.then, but will remain in the bank, taking up a non- executive role through his chairmanship of its newly acquired British subsidiary, Bristol & West.

Like Mr Molloy, Mr Keane has spent most of his career with the Bank of Ireland, having had responsibility at various times for its corporate treasury and international business, group financial and credit control and its corporate finance and stockbroking interests.

Mr Keane, who is from Castleisland, Co Kerry, joined the National Bank in 1958, which was later taken over by the Bank of Ireland group. In his early years, he worked in its retail branches before joining group headquarters in Dublin in 1967 where he took up a planning role.

Following a period in Harvard University in 1973, he was appointed chief corporate accounts manager in the bank's corporate and overseas division. Two years later he became manager of its College Green branch in Dublin and was later promoted to managing director and was appointed a member of the bank's Court of Directors.

In 1991, he became deputy chief executive and has worked closely with the current chief executive, Mr Molloy, over the past six years. He was chairman of its US subsidiary, First New Hampshire, from 1992 until its merger with Citizens Financial group in 1996, and he is currently on the board of Citizens. He is also a director of Bristol & West.

Mr Keane is married to Mrs Rosemary Ohle. They have two grown-up children.