A Barclays bank building is seen at Canary Wharf in London, Britain May 17, 2017. REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth

LONDON (Reuters) - Barclays BARC.L announced on Wednesday board appointments for its non-ring fenced business Barclays International (BI), to comply with new post-crisis rules forcing British banks to separate their retail operations from their riskier business.

Gerry Grimstone, who is currently deputy chair and senior independent director of Barclays Group, will be appointed chair of the eight-person BI board, which comprises corporate and investment banking, international cards and payments and private banking, and will take effect on August 1 2017.

Britain’s ring-fencing rules aim to avoid a repeat of the 2008 financial crisis, when banks’ bad bets in wholesale financial markets put ordinary depositors’ cash at risk, and led to big taxpayer-funded bailouts.

Tim Throsby, president of BI and Emily Portney, chief financial officer of BI will be appointed executive board members alongside five other independent non-executive appointments.

“The formation of the Barclays International Board is another important step in strengthening our corporate governance as we prepare for the stand-up of the ring fenced bank next year,” Grimstone said in a statement.