With the retirement of Bank of Nova Scotia vice chairman Bob Brooks scheduled to take effect today, the bank’s president and CEO Rick Waugh announced the appointment of Sabi Marwah as vice chairman and chief operating officer.

“Sabi Marwah’s contribution to Scotiabank continues to be significant and his leadership and guidance are valued within the bank,” said Waugh in a statement. “I am very pleased to make this announcement and look forward to working with Sabi as his role expands into new areas.”

Marwah joined the bank’s finance department in 1979, and has since held progressively senior positions in the department, including senior vp and comptroller, and senior executive vp and CFO.

In 2005, Marwah was appointed vice chairman and chief administrative officer. In his new role, he will continue to report directly to the president and CEO. In addition to his responsibilities for many of the bank’s administrative functions, he will also oversee global transaction banking, corporate insurance, investments and economics.

Waugh also announced that Brian Porter, currently executive vp and chief risk officer has been appointed group head, risk and treasury. Porter will continue to oversee the global management of credit, market and operational risk for the bank, and will also assume responsibility for treasury.

Over 25 years, Porter has held a variety of management positions, including deputy chairman of Scotia Capital Inc. Porter is also past chairman of the Investment Dealers Association of Canada.

In connection with this change, Stephen Hart, currently senior vp and head of credit risk, has been appointed executive vp, chief credit officer, a new role reporting to Porter.

Hart joined Scotiabank more than 30 years ago and has since held a number of progressively senior management positions. He brings experience in credit risk, portfolio management and U.S. corporate banking.

Scotiabank also announced that a number of executive titles have been introduced to reflect the evolution of its business lines.

“We are confident that these changes to our executive team and this structure represent the right approach to ensuring continued strong leadership and the ongoing success of the Scotiabank Group,” said Waugh.