ABN Amro’s chief financial officer Hugh Scott-Barrett announced his resignation on Thursday in the midst of the titanic takeover battle for the Dutch lender.

Mr Scott-Barrett’s decision to leave the bank on August 1 was taken despite there being no certainty as to the fate of ABN. It has agreed a merger with Barclays, of the UK, but is being pursued by a rival trio of European banks led by Royal Bank of Scotland.