By Scott Wright

CITY high-flyer Martin Gilbert has landed his first major role since announcing his departure from Standard Life Aberdeen last month.

The Scot, who co-founded Aberdeen Asset Management in 1983, has been named as chairman of fintech firm Revolut. Gilbert, who will retire from SLA next September, has already been working as an adviser to Revolut chief executive Nik Storonsky, and will move into the role of non-executive chairman on January 1.

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The appointment was quickly followed by reports that the digital banking player is in talks to raise at least $500 million from investors next year to fund a recruitment drive, as it targets new markets such as the US and Japan.

Mr Storonsky, who co-founded Revolut with Vlad Yatsenko in 2015, told Reuters that he wants to “ raise at least $500 million in direct equity and potentially, maybe at a later stage, up to $1 billion in convertible (debt).”

Revolut, which launched in Singapore and Australia this year, has already raised around $340m from venture capital firms such as Index Ventures, Ribbit Capital, Balderton Capital and DST Global.

Mr Gilbert said: “Revolut is a unique proposition in the digital banking world, and I’m pleased to be joining the board at such an important stage in its development. Nik and the team have made great strides towards building the bank of the future.”