Source: The Canadian Press

Barbara Stymiest, a senior executive at the Royal Bank and former chief executive of the TSX Group, plans to retire from the bank next year.

Once considered a possible successor to chief executive Gord Nixon, the bank said Stymiest plans to focus on her board and charitable work.

“Under Barb’s leadership, we significantly raised the visibility of the RBC brand throughout North America and Europe and developed a focused corporate citizenship approach,” Nixon wrote in a message to the bank’s employees.

“She has provided visible leadership in addressing the increasing complexity of our regulatory environment while contributing to our operational effectiveness through her oversight of many key corporate services.”

Stymiest left the top job at TSX Group to become chief operating officer at Canada’s largest bank in 2004. She most recently was group head for strategy, treasury and corporate services at Royal Bank.

Her hiring by the Royal Bank was part of a larger shakeup of senior management and a corporate reorganization.

Stymiest is expected to retire in June 2011, but the transition process will begin at the bank in January.

In addition to her role at the bank, Stymiest is a director of Research in Motion Ltd. (TSX:RIM), Symcor Inc., Canadian Institute for Advanced Research and the Royal Ontario Museum.

She has also has ties to the United Way Campaign Cabinet, Toronto Rehabilitation Institute Foundation and Hincks-Dellcrest Children’s Centre.

Royal Bank (TSX:RY) is the country’s largest bank by assets and market capitalization, and has 77,000 employees serving more than 18 million clients. The bank has operations across North America and more than 50 other countries.