The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Royal Bank restructure on schedule
Royal Bank of Scotland has said it will complete the ring-fencing of its retail banking operations by the end of 2018.
The lender, which is still 73% owned by the Government, is required to separate its investment banking operations from its high street arm by 2019.
To meet its requirements, it needs to undertake a significant reorganisation of its legal entity structure and business model.
NatWest will become its main customer-facing brand in England, Wales and Western Europe, and in Scotland RBS will be its core brand.
Its investment banking arm will become known as NatWest Markets.
Chief executive Ross McEwan said: “Our proposed future structure under the ring-fencing legislation and our brand strategy are key elements of the bank we are becoming.
“The future ring-fenced structure of the bank is not only designed to be in compliance with the new regulatory requirements and objectives.
“It will better reflect who we are as a bank and what we stand for: a bank that is focused on its customers.”
Earlier this week, RBS revealed that it is to pay $1.1 billion (£845 million) to a US regulator to settle two claims over mis-sold mortgage bonds in the run-up to the financial crisis.
RBS also faces further potentially large settlements over mis-selling of mortgage securities turned sour in the US.
Meanwhile, Conservative MP Andrew Tyrie has warned that bank customers are still being left “exposed” after a series of IT failures at Britain’s biggest lenders.
He wants action taken to strengthen the resilience and security of bank IT systems.