Almond joins Aldermore board

Aldermore, the new British bank, has appointed the former head of Barclays' £60bn mortgage business as a non-executive director.

Jayne Almond, who serves on the Competition Commission, is the latest high-profile addition to Aldermore's board. Sir David Arculus, a former boss of media empire Emap, is Aldermore's chairman, and ex-Barclay's Mercantile chief John Callender is a non-executive director.

Aldermore's chief executive, Philip Monks, said: "We are still very much in expansion mode, so her experience of operating in a high-growth environment is going to be valuable."

Aldermore is set to be profitable in 2011, despite setting up only two years ago. The bank specialises in lending to small and medium-sized businesses.

Ms Almond is also chief executive at Stonehaven, a specialist mortgage firm, and is due to join the Council of Oxford University.