THE new chief executive of Darlington Building Society (DBS) is to be Colin Fyfe, who has held a number of senior roles during his 30 years with the Clydesdale Bank.

The 47-year-old will take over from David Dodd, the outgoing chief executive, and said: “Darlington Building Society is recognised way beyond its North-Eastern heartland as a building society dedicated to looking after local interests.

“I am grateful to David Dodd and his team for leaving me with such a sound platform to build upon and members can be reassured the future of Darlington Building Society is in safe hands.”

The Clydesdale Bank has a £1.1bn turnover and is a UK subsidiary of National Australia Bank and incorporates the Yorkshire Bank.

Mr Fyfe was latterly a director of specialised businesses and operations at the Clydesdale.

He also held a number of high-profile positions including divisional business and finance, human resources and marketing directorships with the bank.

A father-of-two, he presently lives in Wilmslow, Cheshire, but will relocate his family to the North-East as soon as possible.

James Ramsbotham, chairman of DBS, said: “Colin was an outstanding candidate and is uniquely qualified to take on the role.

His achievements as a strategic leader in the fields of finance, human resources and marketing at the very highest levels will stand him in good stead as he looks to build upon the strong foundations DBS has established in the past 158 years. We wish him every success.”

Mr Ramsbotham also paid tribute to David Dodd. He said: “Members of DBS owe David a huge debt of gratitude for leading the society through some turbulent years.”