The SNP hopes that this will increase national confidence in his party’s bid for Scottish independence and that it will counter the international reputation lost since the credit crunch, Bloomberg reports.

Scotland’s two biggest banks, Royal Bank of Scotland and HBOS, were badly hit by the credit crunch, which has been blamed for a demise of support for Scottish independence within the nation. Even so, cities such as Edinburgh remain important centres for banking and finance.

Mr Salmond hopes rebuild the country’s financial industry. It is now pursuing “a number of wealth-management possibilities” to lure banking jobs, the news agency reported him saying.

“I think Scotland’s reputation and even more importantly performance will have been re-established over the next few years,” Mr Salmond said.

Scotland became part of the Kingdom of Great Britain through the Act of Union in 1707. A referendum on Scottish independence is expected to take place next year.