Royal Bank of Canada makes its interim CFO permanent

(Reuters) -Royal Bank of Canada said on Thursday that interim finance chief Katherine Gibson would take over the role on a permanent basis, effective immediately.

Gibson has been the bank's interim CFO since April following the ouster of Nadine Ahn, who was terminated after RBC's investigation found she was in an undisclosed close personal relationship with another executive, breaching its code of conduct.

Ahn has denied all allegations and has sued the country's largest bank for nearly C$50 million, alleging wrongful termination and "gender-based stereotyping."

RBC, which countersued Ahn, said in April its investigation found no evidence of misconduct by the former CFO or the other employee in regards to the bank's previously issued financial statements and strategy or its business performance.

Gibson's appointment comes as the bank rejigs its upper ranks and changes its reporting segments, while absorbing HSBC's 780,000 clients and C$71 billion loan book.

During her two decades with the bank, Gibson has been involved with some of RBC's key businesses, including its wealth division, and has held board positions on its domestic and global units.

Late last month, RBC surpassed analysts' estimates for quarterly profit as it set aside a smaller-than-expected sum to protect itself against losses on bad loans.

Shares in the bank have surged roughly 25% so far this year. In comparison rival Bank of Nova Scotia is up about 9%, while Toronto-Dominion Bank has lost 2.2%.

(Reporting by Manya Saini in Bengaluru; Editing by Janane Venkatraman and Anil D'Silva)