Dave McKay joined the Toronto-based Royal Bank of Canada’s board of directors on Friday and assumed his responsibilities as president and CEO of the bank.

Prior to being appointed as president on February 26, 2014, McKay was group head of the personal & commercial banking segment of RBC, which comprises RBC’s personal banking operations and certain retail investment businesses in Canada, the Caribbean and the U.S., as well as RBC’s commercial banking operations in Canada and the Caribbean.

McKay succeeds Gordon Nixon who has retired from the board and his role as CEO.

“I want to thank Gord for his leadership and congratulate him on a remarkable career at RBC. Under his guidance, RBC has grown into one of the largest and most-respected financial institutions globally,” said Kathleen Taylor, chairwoman of the board, RBC. “We are pleased to welcome Dave McKay to the board of directors and are confident that under his leadership, RBC will continue to build on its success.”