Will Tesco offer life-line to Scots bank employees?

Tesco Personal Finance is moving to a new global headquarters in Edinburgh, and may yet be recruiting.

The new headquarters will be in the capital's InterPoint Haymarket area and have room for up to 460 staff, according to property experts. With the likes of HBOS and RBS poised to shed staff, any bank on a recruitment spree will be music to the ears of the local financial community.

However, before sending in your CV, it's worth bearing in mind that 200 of the new seats will be filled by people previously employed by Royal Bank of Scotland before Tesco bought out its stake in the bank in July for 250m. Subsequent recruitment has focused on senior management, and the bank is now looking to build its operational infrastructure.

Matthew Dransfield, head of HR Tesco for Personal Finance, tells us: "Most of the people we have recruited, or are recruiting, for are for functions that we would have previously relied on RBS for. We're taking on risk, legal, product development and marketing professionals and the rest is a case of 'watch-this-space' as we're not clear on how many people we'll need going forward."

He did point out, however, that Tesco is focused on expansion, even if exact plans are unclear. Does that mean he's been deluged with applications from quality people as a result of the fall-out from other Scottish institutions?

"We've never struggled to attract the best people because we have a strong brand," says Dransfield. "What's more, while there are good people in Scotland, there is no shortage of people looking to move north of the border for the right opportunity."