It might have taken a good few months to materialise, but Royal Bank of Scotland’s appointment of three banking heavy-weights as non-executive directors has largely been met with nods of approval. However, shareholders are yet to give their full vote of confidence to the move, and many are expecting further changes in the boardroom. Investors reckon chairman Sir Tom McKillop is on shaky ground, largely due to the rosy picture he painted prior to the bank’s problems. (Telegraph)

Meanwhile, its investment banking arm has taken on 15 Bear Stearns mortgage traders. (Financial News)

Top brass shake-out at Fannie Mae in attempt to restore confidence. (AP)

Singapore SWF signals confidence in Merrill Lynch by increased stake. (International Herald Tribune)

Citi cost-cutting venture makes sense and isn’t just about being stingy. (Bankervision)

Investment banking drags Crédit Agricole profits down by 94%. (Financial Times)

Natixis to go ahead with €3.8bn rights issue at discount of up to 40%. (Reuters). This is after a second-quarter loss of over €1bn (Bloomberg)

Lehman apologises for plagiarism mishap. (FT Alphaville)

Japanese financial markets face a new threat – the yakuza. (Times)

You won’t see these bankers queuing up outside the Job Centre. (DealBook)

$11m never to see your father-in-law again? (Newsgroper)

Lloyds TSB changes man’s pants (password). (BBC)

Mr Bean says it's back to the '70s. (Guardian)