Natwest pressed to find Rose replacement before share sale

NATWEST is under pressure to name a permanent successor to Dame Alison Rose before its shares go on sale to the general public.

Charles Donald, head of UK Government Investments (UKGI), told the Treasury select committee that the taxpayer-owned lender should provide greater clarity on its leadership and move quickly to name a new chief executive before a public share sale this year.

The Treasury is planning to offload some of its 36pc stake in Natwest to the public in a “Tell Sid”-style privatisation drive, which could take place as early as June. UKGI is the in-house government advisory unit guiding the public share sale since the Chancellor announced it during the Autumn Statement.

Mr Donald said: “They need to provide clarity to the market on their proposals around either confirming the interim chief executive or a process around appointing a permanent chief executive for the market to be comfortable.”

Former Natwest investment bank head Paul Thwaite was named the bank’s interim chief executive last July for an initial 12-month contract. He is yet to be made permanent.

Mr Thwaite was appointed after Dame Alison abruptly stepped down following the Coutts debanking controversy involving former Ukip leader Nigel Farage.

The appointment of a permanent successor is made harder by a looming boardroom shake-up.

Chairman Howard Davies is stepping down in April to be replaced by Ocado chairman Rick Haythornthwaite.

Mr Haythornthwaite will take responsibility for hiring the permanent chief. He joined the board in January and is currently leading the search for Dame Alison’s successor.

UKGI is responsible for running the Government’s investment in private companies. Its director, Holger Vieten, told MPS the Government was in the “development and design” stage of the Natwest retail offer. He said Goldman Sachs had been hired as privatisation strategy adviser. Barclays and Solid Solutions have been recruited to advise on the retail offer, while “magic circle” firm Freshfields is offering legal advice.

He added: “It’s a work in progress. We have some windows where the share sale could happen. The timetable hasn’t been approved. The very earliest could be around summer time.”

The Government owns a near-36pc stake in Natwest having bailed out its predecessor, RBS, during the financial crisis. It has slowly reduced its holding over the last 15 years from around 84pc.

‘The share sale timetable hasn’t been approved. The very earliest could be around summer time’