First chair of the Scottish National Investment Bank appointed

Willie Watt has been appointed as the first chair of the board of the Scottish National Investment Bank.

Watt is currently chair of Martin Currie, an Edinburgh-based international public equities investment firm, and is a member of the advisory board of Scottish Equity Partners.

Prior to becoming chair of the firm, Watt was its CEO for 18 years from 2001 until February 2019.

He will stand down as chair of Martin Currie in December 2019.

Previously Watt spent 16 years with the 3i Group, latterly as managing director of its Scottish business.

He has also run specialist venture, buy out and energy investment teams.

The Scottish Government has committed to investing £2bn over 10 years in the Scottish National Investment Bank, which will be up and running in 2020.

The bank will invest in businesses and communities across Scotland with an emphasis in its investment on tackling key challenges such as climate change.

Mackay said: “I’m delighted to appoint Willie Watt as the first chair of the board of the Scottish National Investment Bank.

“The bank has the opportunity to transform and grow Scotland’s economy.

“Willie’s background in investment, and his wealth of experience in building organisations with the right kind of culture and values, will help to shape it as a trusted and credible financial institution now and for generations to come.

“I look forward to working together as we build an ethical, sustainable and inclusive bank to support economic growth across Scotland and help businesses and communities to flourish.”