Atom, which is applying for a banking licence and plans to offer current and savings accounts and loans, will offer its services online and have no branches. It has been set up by Anthony Thomson, the co-founder of Metro Bank, Britain's first new high street bank for over a century.

McFall, a member of Britain's upper house of parliament, was chairman of the Treasury Select Committee - which examines the work of Britain's finance ministry - between 2001 and 2010.

He subsequently sat on the Parliamentary Commission on Banking Standards, which was tasked with finding ways to reform British banks between 2012 and 2013.

"Few people have the chance to guide the building of a bank from its very inception, and this is an opportunity to bring to bear my own personal experience in the financial services industry," McFall said on Friday.

Britain's financial regulator and lawmakers are keen to see new banks emerge to break the dominance of the country's biggest banks - Lloyds Banking Group (>> Lloyds Banking Group PLC), Barclays (>> Barclays PLC), HSBC (>> HSBC Holdings plc) and Royal Bank of Scotland (>> Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc) - which control about three-quarters of the personal current account market.

"Putting in place a strong board now is a key part of our journey towards authorisation and launch," Thomson said.

Atom has also appointed Patricia Jackson, a former senior partner for regulation and banking risk at Ernst and Young, to chair its risk committee.

(Reporting by Matt Scuffham; Editing by Pravin Char)

By Matt Scuffham