George Osborne regrets mistakes over RBS and looks to sell up quick March 5, 2015 George Osborne has conceded he made an error not reforming the state-owned bank RBS when the coalition took power in 2010. Speaking to the Financial Times Weekend Magazine the chancellor said he hopes to move forward "as quickly as we can to get rid of it". He added that he regretted acquiescing to the view [...]
Goodwin‘s HQ to become RBS’ enterprise hub March 4, 2015 THE EXECUTIVE wing of RBS’ sprawling Edinburgh HQ is to become an accelerator for new businesses, the state-backed bank said yesterday. The site gained notoriety under former boss Fred “The Shred” Goodwin, who cut costs elsewhere, but built a luxurious set of offices for executives. The unit is intended to bring together expertise and financing to [...]
From Greece and Natalie Bennett to the banks and London’s skyline: Here’s what got us talking this week February 27, 2015 There was a lot of talk about a dress. And quite a bit about the llama drama. But here at City A.M. Towers, we were obsessing about plenty of other things. Greece finally managed to break the stalemate over its debt, negotiating a four month extension with Germany, and ending weeks of debate about a [...]
RBS’ recovery hurt by German Coutts tax probe February 26, 2015 RBS’ SHARES took a tumble yesterday as the bailed-out bank warned of more legal costs to come, including a tax evasion investigation by German authorities into its private banking arm Coutts. The revelation came as the bank reported falling losses for 2014 as its cost-cutting programme outpaced the decline in revenues. It lost £3.5bn in [...]
As RBS reports a £3.5bn loss, is George Osborne right that senior executives should not get bonuses? February 26, 2015 Steve Davies, education director at the Institute of Economic Affairs, says Yes The question is not whether bonuses are the correct way to remunerate people. It is whether RBS should be making such payments when the bank is incurring serious losses. Clearly, the answer should be no. When a business is in financial straits, the [...]
RBS chairman Sir Philip Hampton will succeed Sir Christopher Gent at GSK earlier than expected February 26, 2015 Outgoing RBS chairman Sir Philip Hampton is being parachuted into a new job at GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) earlier than expected and will spend three months as chairman of both companies. The departure of the drugmaker’s current chairman Sir Christopher Gent was revealed last year, with Hampton due to take the reigns from 1 September. Hampton will [...]
Coutts & Co under investigation for “aiding and abetting tax evasion” February 26, 2015 Coutts & Co – the Queen's own bank – is being investigated by German authorities for tax evasion. The German prosecutor is examining the Swiss arm of the 300-year-old private bank for “alleged aiding and abetting of tax evasion by certain Coutts & Co clients”, its parent RBS revealed today. “Current and former [...]
RBS names Sir Howard Davies chairman and reports £3.5bn loss February 26, 2015 The figures RBS has reported a full-year attributable loss of £3.5bn thanks largely to one-off items including a £4bn fair-value adjustment. The bank has also named Sir Howard Davies as its new chairman, succeeding Philip Hampton who will step down with effect from 31 August. RBS's operating profit also came to £3.5bn. The bank's Common Equity [...]
RBS chief executive Ross McEwan hands back £1m share reward February 26, 2015 Royal Bank of Scotland chief executive Ross McEwan will forfeit a £1m portion of his pay packet for the second year in a row. McEwan, known as the lowest-paid bank boss in the FTSE 100, said he did not want to receive the "role based" incentive often used by major UK banks to get around [...]
Royal Bank of Scotland suspends two staff in forex scandal probe February 25, 2015 Shares in Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) edged one per cent lower today after it emerged it has suspended a further two employees amid an investigation into the rigging of foreign exchange markets. The bank, which is 81 per cent owned by the taxpayer, said: “We can confirm that two members of staff have been [...]