Singapore: British drug maker GlaxoSmithKline is in advanced talks to recruit Sir Philip Hampton, chairman of Royal Bank of Scotland, as the next chairman. According to Sky News report, Sir Hampton is all set to join the drug maker, which is battling for its reputation in the midst of bribery allegations in China.

Sir Hampton would replace Sir Christopher Gent, the current chairman of the company. Reports said that GSK could announce Sir Hampton's appointment next month. It said that he is likely to join GSK as a non-executive director or deputy chairman and move into the chairman's seat in 2015.

Sir Hampton is a corporate financier and has held a number of roles in the boardrooms of major companies including finance director of British Steel and a short stint at Lloyds before the 2008 banking crisis. He was chairman of supermarket group J Sainsbury when he was parachuted in to chair RBS and help in rescuing the bank from a major financial crisis.