View from City Road: Barclays sets the scene for excitement

As far as investor relations go, Martin Taylor's appointment as chief executive of Barclays has been a rip-roaring success. As the share price galloped upwards yesterday, institutional shareholders fell over themselves with praise for the man from Courtaulds Textiles, and were happy to give him the benefit of the doubt - for the time being.

Although he could hardly do worse than Barclays' professional bankers, doubts there must nevertheless be. Barclays has suffered appalling problems, most of them stemming from the barmy decision to launch a near-pounds 1bn rights issue at the peak of the economic cycle, and then to lend the money principally to the property sector just as the market was heading into its worst slump since the Second World War. Credit analysis and risk management are top of the list of priorities for any new chief executive. The question is whether Mr Taylor can learn to deal with these areas quickly enough.

Mr Taylor faced the same problem - ignorance - when he joined Courtaulds, but he proved a quick and effective learner. Significantly, he managed to win and hold the support of his team while he was still learning. He has a vacuum cleaner- like mind and a prodigious memory. There is every reason to believe his open approach and powerful intellect will be able to pull off the same trick at Barclays.

Any improvement in Barclays' performance could come more quickly than expected, in part because of the turn in the economic cycle. But there will also be an impact from management change. Contrary to appearances, the UK's big banks are not like supertankers, which take a long time to turn around. They can respond rapidly to new management. One key obstacle, low morale, can quickly be restored by a new face.

Four new chief executives in Britain's biggest banks over the past few years prove the point. Derek Wanless has transformed NatWest from being a bank in crisis to the analysts' favourite. The appointment of Peter Ellwood at TSB, Malcolm Williamson at Standard Chartered and Brian Pearse at Midland have all been clear buy signals.

The worst of Barclays' bad debt provisioning is over, and the stock market believes that the bank is on the road to recovery. So Mr Taylor should have the time to rethink profoundly Barclays' role and structure. The somewhat pedestrian clearing bank sector, traditionally run by managers who started life in a small branch and worked their way up, could see some excitement over the next few years.