Barclays, the 300-year-old financial institution facing a PR crisis that is spilling out of the U.K., has bolstered its PR ranks amid the storm.

Barclays CEO Robert Diamond quit July 3 after he admitted its investment banking operation rigged global interest rates. Chief operating officer Jerry del Missier also resigned in the crisis, which saw the bank hit by a Ł290M ($453M) fine by British regulators. Criminal and political inquiries are heating up, as well.

The bank recently brought in Omnicom PR firm Portland and has worked with Brunswick Group for years. In late March, the company hired Diageo’s Stephen Doherty to lead communications. He is a former Cohn & Wolfe, Edelman and Weber Shandwick hand. Giles Croot heads media relations for the bank.

Barclays, which traces its roots to 1690 to a pair of goldsmith bankers in London, has raised its U.S. profile in recent years through sports marketing sponsorships, including naming rights to a major PGA golf event and the new arena for the NBA's Brooklyn Nets. slated to open in September.

Abernathy MacGregor Group has counseled Barclays in the U.S. In 2009, the bank hired WPP’s Penn, Schoen & Berland Associates to gauge its image in the financial marketplace after the global financial crisis.